Through Your Window
by writingunderatree
Summary: Edward is boring, house then work, and vice versa. But they say every morning is a new beginning, so what happens to Edward’s morning if he wakes up next to a beautiful woman, in his house—but it’s not his fiancée? Will this be his new beginning?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer for my whole story: Not mine. I don't own Twilight, or anything else I use in this story. But I do own a copy of Twilight, and the TV I use to watch the show that this story's plot is based ever so loosely (sorta) on. **

**Author's note: Hey! A new story! Finally! I'm so proud of myself, and of you (if you review after reading) the plot is loosely based on the plot of **_**The Woman Pulled From My Rib (**_**I still have no idea why they call it that though) **

**Summary: Edward is boring, house then work, and vice versa. But they say every morning is a new beginning, so what happens to Edward's morning if he wakes up next to a beautiful woman, in his house—but it's not his fiancée? Will this be his new beginning?**

**

* * *

**

_Through Your Window_

_By writingunderatree_

**Prologue**

_**A Day in the Life of Edward Cullen**_

"_Another day, boring as usual, but not for me"_

_

* * *

_

**Edward's Point of View **

I could hear the beep of my digital alarm clock as I felt the sunlight lightly caress my face. I opened my eyes, it's exactly 6:30 am, and I don't need to look at the clock to know that. It's my routine, wake up at seven, go to the bathroom, bathe, shave, dress, and go down to the dining room where breakfast, prepared by my trust-worthy maid, and friend, Angela, awaits me.

I did just that, and I after breakfast, put on my square shaped glasses (which my fiancée says look hideous, but I don't care since I love them anyway) and I drove to work. The streets of New York were already bustling with activity, even in the early hour. I guess everyone is just as in a hurry to get to work as I was. I ignored the high-rise buildings as all I was focused on was getting to Cullen Incorporated.

"Good morning Mr. Cullen," Oliver, the elderly security guard greeted me.

"Morning Oliver," I replied, smiling at him. I'd have to say he was one of my most loyal employees. It's a shame he has to retire soon, but I'll make sure he has a comfortable life after work.

I took out my phone and put it on wireless, "Lauren," I said to my secretary, "What's today's schedule?"

"Oh! Good morning Mr. Cullen!" She said in her nasal voice. Doesn't she get a hint? I'm getting married in half a year. "You have meetings today with the partner companies sir, and with the officials from the other branches. Mr. Hale is waiting in the conference room with the other officials. And your sister Alice called; she said you have another meeting with the organizers for your European branch. She said it may last til the evening"

"Alright then, Lauren. Please call Tanya for me and tell her that I can't come to dinner tonight"

"Of course sir"

I arrived at the conference room and sat down. Formalities were over and it was time to get down to business; another day in the life of Edward Cullen.


	2. Chapter 2

_Previously . . . _

_I arrived at the conference room and sat down. Formalities were over and it was time to get down to business; another day in the life of Edward Cullen._

_

* * *

_

_Through Your Window_

_By writingunderatree_

**Chapter 1 **

_**Breaking but Not Entering**_

"_I put the straps between my teeth, and let me tell you, leather does NOT taste good"_

_

* * *

_

**Edward's Point of View**

I pinched the bridge of my nose as I walked out of the conference room that night. I hated these meetings, yet they were what made the family company the successful one it is today. Although I'd been cooped up there all day, at least we got some work done. The plans for the European company were up and running and everything else here was going on smoothly. I think I'd have some time off in a few days; maybe I can work on a new composition on my piano or build another puzzle.

I walked to my car and drove home. I called Angela and had her have dinner ready, I missed dinner with Tanya but it was all for a good cause anyway.

I sighed, _Tanya . . . _

Honestly, I don't love Tanya; it was all an arranged marriage but what else is there for me to do? I'm a Cullen, and I run the company, it's only natural that I marry a Denali. I don't really see anything in her, honestly, she's dense and all about self image. I don't think she thinks of anyone but herself. I don't really know why I'm letting myself be tied to someone like her, I don't have an option, or I'm just not giving myself an option. I wouldn't know. She's overly clingy and just so . . . I don't know anymore. I don't see why I don't put myself on the edge of reason.

I sighed again. _Oh well . . . _

I get out of the car once I park in the driveway and enter the house. Angela's there, by the door to greet me. "Good evening Edward, rough day?"

"You have no idea. And I missed dinner with Tanya; she's going to throw a hissy fit."

"And knowing you, you won't care," she replied with a knowing smile.

"Duh," I replied, and I chuckled. I sat down at the dinner table as Angela brought the food to the table. It was lasagna, quick and easy to eat.

"Do you want to join me?" I asked her. She's not a maid to me; she's my friend, or someone I can vent about Tanya to. She dislikes her almost as much as I do, or probably more.

"No thanks, not tonight. I already ate" she said with a shrug as she just sat down across the table. "By the way, the new maid you're hiring arrived awhile ago. Want to meet her?"

"Sure"

"Jessica! Come here! Mr. Cullen wants to meet you!"

I watched a petite girl with curly, brown hair enter the room, she looked nice enough.

"Good evening Mr. Cullen! It's nice to meet you and to work for you. Thank you for giving me this opportunity." She said eagerly and . . . in a very hyper manner.

I raised my hand to silence her. "It's not a problem. I hope you feel comfortable with your job"

"Oh, of course sir!" She replied.

"I'll show you your room," Angela said, and with an apologetic smile, led her out of the room.

I sighed; I checked the wall clock and saw that it was almost 10:00. I went upstairs and put on my emerald silk pajamas. I know, they sound corny, and Tanya's always hated them, but I like them and they're comfortable. I walked to my work table in the adjoining room and stared at the puzzle before me. It was a puzzle of a waterfall, I loved building puzzles, and it was my hobby, other than the piano. But as I sat down and started building, I couldn't help but wonder if my life was like one big puzzle—always missing a piece.

**Tanya's Point of View**

I shook the keys in the damn keyhole as I opened the door to my apartment. I was furious, honestly. It was just like Edward to cancel dinner, but to have his _secretary _do it, now I just felt like some sort of client, not worthy of his time. I slammed my purse on the coffee table next to the door and made a move to turn on the lights when suddenly, I felt arms, snake their way around my waist, and before I could scream, my mouth was covered with. . . lips?

As I was being attacked by this unknown person, tremors shot through my body, I pushed him away but he was too strong but I tried to move myself towards the wall and I felt it desperately, looking for the damn light switch. I found it and clicked it on, and once the light flooded the room, I saw myself face-to-face with my attacker.

Rather, the blue eyes of my lover, James Davis.

I sighed in relief and I slapped his arm hard in annoyance.

"Ouch! What was that for, Babe?"

"For scaring the shit out of me! I thought you were some sort of rapist!"

He looked at me with a sly smile as he pulled me closer and whispered in my ear: "But if I were the one to do that to you, it wouldn't really be considered rape, now would it?"

I looked up at him through my hooded lids, desire already filling me. Edward could never make me feel like this. "No, it wouldn't," I replied, in a sultry voice that I knew would turn him on in seconds. I was right, when he kissed me passionately. He tried to push me back against the wall. _Nu-uh-uh, it's MY turn now._

I pushed him harder so he fell against my wide circular couch; I straddled him as I started to unbutton his shirt.

I don't really dish much of the details, so I'll leave it to your imagination for now.

~*~*~

I sighed deeply before putting my glass of red wine to my lips as tightened my grip on James' bare chest, feeling his shapely muscles as he lay against my own, which was also bare.

"Hey, what's wrong?" He asked me as he looked up at me, concern in his eyes.

"I don't know! I don't know what's wrong! I don't know why I'm marrying Edward, I don't know why I'm pissed at Edward, other than the fact that I SHOULD be pissed at him. But I know I shouldn't be pissed at him because you're here . . . I'm just confused!"

"Shh," he told me, rubbing my arms gently. "It's okay, take it easy. I'm not pressuring you. You take your time with this, see if you can delay the wedding anymore. I know about your obligations and all, we've talked about it for ages and I understand. I just wished sometimes . . . that maybe . . . you didn't have to do them."

I was touched. That was the most touching thing he's said to me in ages, well other than the time he told me he loved me. "Thanks Baby," I replied as I kissed his lips softly.

"But honestly," he asked me. "Why are you marrying such a prude like him?"

"I don't know . . . I'm a Denali, he's a Cullen . . . it's only natural! But please . . . he's soooooo booooring. His hobbies, other than working of course, are building puzzles. And if he's not tinkering with those . . . things, he plays on his piano, which just _bores _me to death . . . "I easily replied. _God, I think he loves that stupid piano of his more than he loves me . . . _

~*~*~

**Edward's Point of View**

I put away the puzzle pieces and walked into my bedroom to turn in for the night. I checked my alarm clock, set at the same time, and I lay down as sleep claimed me.

**Bella's Point of View **

I ran as fast as I could . . . well, as fast as these stupid stilettos would let me. I saw a house on the end of the road. _Whew . . . big house. _It seemed dark. _Time to go in._

I crept by the main gate and saw a guard house. I peeked in slowly; I looked at the two guards that were . . . playing poker? Okay . . .

I crept in and entered a random gate which led to the garden, and a swimming pool. _Fancy . . . _I saw a railing and a couple of platforms below each floor, perfect for my entrance. I removed my shoes and bit the straps with my teeth and let me tell you . . . leather doesn't taste good. I climbed up the slippery rails and tried my best to keep my balance as I crept up platform to platform until I reached a balcony with a door. _Please let it be open . . . _I prayed.

I turned the knob slowly and peered in through the thin, white curtains. And there I saw, lying on the bed on his back was an Adonis. A god with tousled bronze hair and looked absolutely like a figment of my imagination. _Wait, even my imagination isn't _that _good. _

I don't know what happened next, whether it was some sort of unknown force but I just felt myself going towards him. I removed my shoe straps from my mouth, before it hung open and the shoes fell which would just signal this god that I was there. _Hey, that may not be such a bad idea._

_**It is a bad idea, and you know it.**_

_Fine . . . _

I walked to the other side of his bed, the _empty _side and I have no idea what came over me, but I climbed in and went under the covers. I wrapped my arms around his torso and cuddled myself to his side. He sure didn't seem to mind because the next thing I knew, his arms were around me too.

_This is the best night's sleep I've ever had . . . _

**So . . . the verdict for my new story? Pass or fail? Please review and tell me what you think and read my other stories too! Hugs! :D **


	3. Chapter 3

_Previously . . . _

_I walked to the other side of his bed, the empty side and I have no idea what came over me, but I climbed in and went under the covers. I wrapped my arms around his torso and cuddled myself to his side. He sure didn't seem to mind because the next thing I knew, his arms were around me too. _

_This is the best night's sleep I've ever had . . ._

_

* * *

_

_Through Your Window_

_By writingunderatree_

**Chapter 2 **

_**Who Are You?**_

"_Minty, huh?"_

_

* * *

_

**Edward's Point of View **

I heard my alarm clock beep again, signaling a new morning. I opened my eyes slowly and as I tried to get up to reach it, I felt the warmth of a hand on my chest.

_Whoa, whoa, whoa. WAIT. The warmth of a HAND on my CHEST?_

I looked to my side _slowly. _I knew this couldn't be Tanya. I've never given her a key to the house. It's not like I wanted to anyway.

I looked at my side and saw a woman. A _beautiful _woman, her pale skin a stark contrast to the black dress she was wearing, her hair fanned around her head like a halo. _WHO IS THIS WOMAN? AND WHAT THE HELL IS SHE DOING ON MY BED?_

I reached for my glasses slowly, as the alarm on my clock got louder. _Stupid clock. _

She frowned slightly, probably at the noise and she groaned.

"Grr . . . five more minutes!" I heard her whine in a beautiful voice, the voice of an angel.

"Uh . . . "Ok, how do I do this? "Um, miss? Hello?" I spoke in her ear as I shook her arm slowly. I didn't know her and I know I shouldn't be waking her up gently. For all I know, she may be here to rob me.

Wait, ROB me?!

"Miss! Wake up! Who ARE you?"

Her eyes opened in an instant as she looked at me like a deer in headlights. _God, her brown eyes were gorgeous. _

"Me?" she asked.

"Yes! You! What are you doing here? Are you here to rob me? If you want to, name it, I'll give you anything you want!"

"Ouch! Me? A ROBBER? How can you say that?" she told me. "You think someone looking like this . . ." she said as she stood up on the bed, her body in full view, clad in a skin-tight black dress that hugged her curves perfectly and reached only mid thigh. ". . . Is a robber?" she asked me.

"Uh . . ." was all I could come up with as I stared at her body unabashedly. I don't care if I have a fiancée.

"Hello?" she said as she kneeled in front of me and peered at my face. "Why'd your eyes glaze over all of a sudden? You think I'm sexy, don't you?" she asked me playfully, a coy smile on her lips. Before I could reply, she took my glasses of and turned around, putting them on and looked back at me.

"Do they look good on me?"

Okay, I admit, she looked great in my glasses. She was right, I did find her sexy, even more so when she wore my glasses. I shook my head. _Snap out of it! Potential robber here!_

I took back my glasses, not even bothering to answer her question. "Who are you? Why are you here? How did you get past the guards?"

"Hey, hey, slow down! I'll answer them. I'm Bella, I'm here because I felt like being here, and it was the nearest house I could find and about the guards, all I can say is that you should really find better ones"

"Why?"

"Because they're busy"

"MY guards?"

"Yeah, the one playing poker with his friend, your other guard" she told me with a smile as if she were suppressing laughter.

I looked at her with a disbelieving look. _Seriously, why is she even here?_ I really couldn't understand why she was here if she wasn't here to rob anything.

I asked her again, "Why are you here?!"

"Hello? Weren't you listening? I'm here because I need a place to stay for the night, conveniently, your windows were open and so was your door. So thank you," was all she had to say.

"So you need a place to stay?" I asked her again.

"Duh, why else would I be here? I'm taking a shower if you don't mind"

My mind was in a haze. "Uhhh . . . go ahead," was all I was able to choke out.

**Jessica's Point of View**

"Jessica! Wake up!" Angela told me as she shook me awake. Like; what the hell.

"I'm up! I'm up!" I said too loudly as I woke up.

"Good, it's your first day so get into your uniform and take Edward's laundry from the hamper in his room," she told me.

"Alright, alright, I'm on it," I replied as I walked to the bathroom and pulled on my uniform.

Soon after, I walked up the stairs to Sir Edward's bedroom. As I was getting the clothes, I heard voices. It wasn't the whole conversation but I swear that's a woman I hear in there:

"_Duh, why else would I be here?"_

"_Oh whatever" _and I couldn't hear anymore after that.

Sir Edward has a woman in his bedroom? Is it Miss Tanya? I better ask Angela.

I ran down the stairs and into the laundry room, dropping the load of laundry in the washing machine and hurrying to the kitchen where Angela was making breakfast.

"Angela!!"

"What?" Angela jumped up in surprise as I put my hands down on her shoulders in my haste.

"Sir Edward! There's a woman in his room!"

"A what?" she asked me, raising her eyebrow. "You said he has a _woman _in there? It's not Miss Tanya, she wasn't here yesterday and as far as I know, and I _would _know, that Edward didn't give her a key."

"But I swear! There is a woman in there! I heard her voice. High and airy!" I told her, defending myself. I did not want to be labeled as a nutcase on my first day.

"Fine, if you say you really heard a woman, then let's go upstairs and ask," she replied.

"Uhh, why don't _you _go upstairs and ask?"

"Because you heard it. Now come on!"

"Fine" I replied as we walked up to the stairs.

Angela knocked on Sir Edward's door and I heard some shuffling before he opened it and stood in the middle of the doorframe.

"Edward, Jessica here says she heard a woman's voice while she was getting your laundry. Is someone in there?" she asked him as she tried to peek into his room.

"Huh? What? A woman? No! Of course not! It was the TV!" he replied quickly.

"Oh? Well I'll just go in and check if everything's fine and maybe make the bed—" she replied as she tried to peek again.

"NO! I mean, you don't need to. I've got it covered."

"Okaaay . . . well, just go down to breakfast if you're ready"

"Alright," he replied as he quickly shut the door.

"See Jess? It was just the TV! You had to make a scene out of it," Angela scolded me.

"Sorry, I was curious"

**Edward's Point of View**

I leaned on the door as I shut it behind me. _So close, too close. _

I looked at the floor in front of the bathroom door and I saw Bella's black dress in a pool by the door. I could hear the water in the shower and her sweet, alluring voice, humming . . .

_I should stop. _So I sat down and waited patiently by the bathroom door for her to finish. When she got out, I swear I was going to die again. She was wearing _my _robe, it was slightly loose so it showed a _lot _of cleavage and it was bunched up near the bottom, only up to mid-thigh. She was so goddamn sexy.

"Hey," she told me. I snapped out of it quickly before she notice my staring, or drooling.

"Uh . . . yeah?"

"I'm done. You can use it now, and I brushed my teeth—with your toothbrush. Hope you don't mind," she asked me, blushing.

"But my breath's minty fresh now! Wanna smell?" she asked as she blew in front of my face. I inhaled as she laughed softly. _I'm beginning to love that laugh. _

"Minty huh?" she asked.

"Yeah . . ." she blew again. Her face was awfully close as she asked me the next question. "Edward, will your wife mind this?"

"I don't have a wife . . ." I replied as I watched her smile break out. "Really? Then I hope if you don't mind that I do this,"

Then she kissed me.

And with that little kiss, I've officially fallen for Bella, and I didn't even know her real name.


	4. Chapter 4

Previously . . .

"Yeah . . ." she blew again. Her face was awfully close as she asked me the next question. "Edward, will your wife mind this?"

"I don't have a wife . . ." I replied as I watched her smile break out. "Really? Then I hope if you don't mind that I do this,"

Then she kissed me.

I've officially fallen for Bella, and I didn't even know her real name.

* * *

_Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 3**

Discoveries

"Just . . . stay"

* * *

EPOV

I couldn't believe it. I fell for a girl . . . no, a _woman; _with just one little kiss.

I never pinned myself as that sort of guy. I was supposed to be the boring guy, I follow routine and schedule, nothing changes—nothing and yet, here I am, acting like a hopeless romantic who gives up his heart to a girl he doesn't really know after _one _kiss.

I'm pathetic aren't I?

But as much as I'd love to drown in self-pity—which is something the old "me" would do, I didn't feel like it.

That was surprising—there was never a day that I just "didn't feel like it."

Was Bella here for a certain reason? Definitely not to rob me, since I've never heard of a case where robbers break into houses and sleep next to the owners in bed. _That _was completely unnatural.

Yet here she is.

"Edward?"

Bella's angelic voice knocked me out of my stupor. She was looking up at me, her face a mask of confusion and I could see her teeth biting her bottom lip gently—but nervously. _And now . . . I just have the urge to kiss her again. _

"Sorry about that Bella, I was just . . . thinking," I replied lamely.

She raised an eyebrow and smiled mischievously, "Oh really, about what?" she asked me.

I smirked and leaned closer to her face, "It's more of _who _I'm thinking about_," _I replied as I watched her eyelids gently droop and flutter. _I got the power! _

"Hmm . . . me?" she asked coyly.

I smiled, "You got it Baby," I replied. _Ok whoa! Since when did I call ANYONE "Baby"!? _She really does have this bizarre effect on me.

I looked over her shoulder and saw the clock on my nightstand. The glowing green letters said 8:00. _Shit, I'm going to be late! _I set her back up to a proper standing position and immediately went to my closet and started pulling out clothes.

I heard Bella giggle. _What a melodious sound! _"Um . . . Edward, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to be late for work!"

"So what about me?" she asked as I turned around. I saw her pouting.

I sighed. "Just . . . stay. Can you wait 'til I get back around noon? We can have lunch."

She smiled and put her arms under her head as she settled down on the bed, and I admit, the sight of her in _my _robe on _my _bed was just . . . there are no words.

_Self-control Edward, you need to control yourself or you'll never make it to work!_

I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly. I went near Bella and spoke in her ear, "Just stay here ok? I'll be back at noon. If Angela or Jessica comes in here, you can go to my study; it's in the adjoining door. They can only go there with my permission and I only have one key—which is with me. So go there and lock the door, ok?"

She looked at me and smiled. "Thanks for taking me in, and don't worry, I'll stay out of trouble . . . for now" she replied with a wink.

I chuckled. "Alright then, I have to go now. Bye!"

She leaned over and gave me a quick peck on the lips. "Bye! See you at lunch. I'll be _right here." _She added that last part in a _very _low tone.

How am I supposed to make it through work today?

:::

Surprisingly, I didn't suffer through a hard-on at work like I expected, instead, my mind was filled with images of this mysterious Bella. What was her full name? Did she have a family? _How did she even end up in my room? _I could tell she was saying less than what was really going on but I didn't want to push her, it may just push her away from me—and I don't think I'll be able to take that.

_I'm acting like I've been in love with her for years._

_Shut up! I'm with TANYA._

_Oh _Tanya, _let's not bring her up again, shall we? _

_Yes, let's not._

And with that final thought, I walked out the office building's doors and to my Volvo. I went in, started it up and drove back happily to my home where my beauty was waiting.

_Wait, is she mine?_

_I hope so. _

:::

I entered the door cautiously, not wanting to alarm Angela with my sudden arrival back home; I faintly remember driving to work in a daze so I'm sure I forgot to tell her I'd be home early. Apparently, stealth is not a strong suit of mine as Angela discovered my presence before I even reached the stairs.

"Oh Edward, you're home early! What's up?" she asked me as she wiped a salad bowl dry.

"Nothing much, work was just slow today so I went home early," I lied as I tried to come up with a convincing smile, it worked.

"Well I'll make lunch then, ok?" She said as she headed back for the kitchen.

"Um . . . ," _How was I going to say this? Just spit it out dude, spit it out. _"Can you bring it up to my room?" I asked, internally grimacing as I thought of how odd I sounded when I asked that request, and how odd the request is.

"Uh . . . sure," she replied, taking a step back and looking at me. She cocked her head to the sight and gave me an appraising look. "Are you not feeling well?"

"No, I just really want to finish that puzzle of the Eiffel Tower in my study," I replied with yet _another _lie.

She didn't press it any further, "Alright then, I'll have Jess bring it up for you," she said as she went back to the kitchen.

"Thanks," I replied as I hurriedly climbed up the stairs, taking the steps two at a time.

I reached my room and went inside, locking the door after shutting it, and turning around just in time to receive a chaste peck on the lips from Bella.

"I missed you," she murmured against my lips as she draped her long, graceful arms around my neck, playing the hair on my nape as she slowly nuzzled me. _I have died and gone to heaven. _

I wrapped my arms around her thin waist have gave her a long, searing kiss. I heard her moan and I stopped (we don't want to get too carried away—Jess will be up any minute) and instead, I rested my forehead against hers.

"Why'd you stop?" She asked me, her bottom lip jutting out into a pout that made her lips look all the more kissable. I gave in and pecked her lips before replying.

"Jess will be up with our lunch any minute; we don't want to get carried away now, do we?" I asked her.

"I guess not," she replied, then she stared slyly at my belt, gently tugging on it. "But we will get carried away . . . soon" and with that, she waltzed into the study.

I looked at her sexy behind, noticing for the first time that she wasn't in the robe anymore, but in a dress that was equally revealing as last night's was. I was a red halter dress that stopped just a little below mid-thigh.

_Shut your mouth Edward._

I shut my mouth immediately and followed her into the study like the lost puppy I was acting like. I entered the study and I gently pushed the door closed, hearing its silent click. I looked up at the angel that was currently sitting on my desk.

"Like the dress?" She asked me, probably knowing that I noticed she wasn't in a robe anymore. I stepped forward and I found myself in between her legs.

"I love it," I replied with my lips just millimeters from her own "It's a shame it has to come off if ever we get . . . carried away," I added; I was about to lean in and kiss her when . . .

_Knock, knock, knock. _

I sighed, frustrated, and rushed back to the bedroom to open the door.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Cullen!" Jessica said enthusiastically. _I wish _I _could be that enthusiastic, but after what could just be the beginning of _getting carried away, _I'm in the middle of a major _problem.

"Thanks Jess," I replied as I took the tray from her. "I'll just bring it down when I'm finished," I said as I closed the door.

I entered the study again and set the tray next to Bella. "Bella, I present to you . . . lunch!" I said with a swipe of my hand over the tray, gesturing to the huge roast beef sandwich, a pitcher of orange juice and a slice of chocolate cake. I swear I could see Bella's mouth water.

"Mmm . . . looks yummy," she said, grabbing half of the sandwich and eagerly stuffing it in her mouth. _Ok, so that wasn't expected, but she looks so adorable eating a sandwich. She reminds me of a little girl. _

I saw her suddenly wrinkle her nose as she swallowed. "What's wrong?" I asked her, did she eat something that shouldn't be there?

She shook her head, giggling. "It's nothing, just a cucumber slice, I hate cucumbers," she said as she peeked into her sandwich and removed two more slices, placing them on the plate. She looked back up at me. "Why aren't you eating yet?" she asked me.

I smiled. "I like watching you eat," was all I said.

She shrugged. "Whatever floats your boat," she replied as she continued eating.

:::

That night, we were cuddling in bed watching some cheesy rom-com when I felt Bella shift and turn towards me.

"Edward?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"I won't be here tomorrow morning when you wake up," she said quietly.

"Why? Are you leaving? Please don't leave!" I said frantically as I sat up on the bed.

She leaned towards me. "Don't be silly! I just have to be somewhere tomorrow! I have a life too and I just can't stay here. I'll be back before nightfall, I promise."

"Promise?" I asked her one more time.

"Promise," she replied fervently, then she kissed me. The rest of the night proceeded in the same way, kissing and occasionally talking until we both fell asleep.

:::

She was right though, because when I woke up the next morning, my arm feeling around her side of the bed, she wasn't there. I sighed dejectedly. It's Saturday, did she plans with another man?

_Don't be stupid Edward! She's here with YOU, why would she be out there with some other man?_

That made a point though. Oh well, no use dwelling on it. I sat up and went to the bathroom but on the way there, I saw Bella's black purse. The words she said last night suddenly rang in my head: _I have to be somewhere tomorrow. . . I'll be back before nightfall._

I looked at the window, it was shut tight, and back to the purse. She wasn't here, and if she's staying here, then I guess I have every right to look.

_But it's against what your Aunt Esme told you!_

But I barely know her, so I pushed my conscience away and slowly opened the purse. Nothing much was inside, just a wallet, a small make-up bag and an ID.

_An ID, with her _full _name. _

I immediately grabbed it and looked at the name: _Isabella Marie Swan._

What a beautiful name. I turned the ID over and on the back was an address, _her address? _I grabbed a pen and a post it from the nightstand and wrote it down.

I put her belongings back in the purse and I got up to get dressed and visit this house of hers.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Not mine. **

**A/N Hey people! It's another update! And it's early!**

**I'd like to thank (and maybe you would too) the people who reviewed for the previous chapter because it just kept me going to finish this one and in RECORD TIME! :)**

**For those who are confused, it's natural, the answers will come soon. . . sooner than you think, or not. **

**It's okay to be confused because this chapter will confuse you more :)) it's good to know I have the desired effect though :D **

**Oh, and some profane language used here, If you don't like it, then I suggest you don't read it. Must protect your virgin eyes and ears (can't do that though, my friend's curses can make a sailor blush)**

_Previously . . . _

_I looked at the window, it was shut tight, and back to the purse. She wasn't here, and if she's staying here, then I guess I have every right to look._

_But it's against what your Aunt Esme told you!_

_But I barely know her, so I pushed my conscience away and slowly opened the purse. Nothing much was inside, just a wallet, a small make-up bag and an ID._

_An ID, with her full name. _

_I immediately grabbed it and looked at the name: Isabella Marie Swan._

_What a beautiful name. I turned the ID over and on the back was an address, her address? I grabbed a pen and a post it from the nightstand and wrote it down._

_I put her belongings back in the purse and I got up to get dressed and visit this house of hers._

_

* * *

_

_Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 4**

Through Your Eyes

_I agreed_

_

* * *

_

**Bella's POV**

I was sitting on a tree branch.

I know, with my coordination, I should've fallen and broken my neck by now, but the thing is, I actually did pick up something from those damn ballet lessons my parents forced me into joining.

I rubbed my hands against the branch, it was thick, and the bark was rough, like any other tree branch. But I loved this tree, call me a tree-hugger, but it's true. It's my only way to feel a sense of self-preservation; I climb onto this branch every night before I stumbled into Edward's life and I look at my window, through the fancy, lacy curtains, into the sanctuary that I once knew was my own, and was mine only. I felt like I never had to leave, I could stay there forever, listening to music, reading, talking to my brother, Emmett, and his girlfriend Rosalie who practically lived with us anyway.

But I couldn't. I had to leave, otherwise I'd go insane, and I'd lose my entire grip on the sanity I have left.

All because my parents want to marry me off.

They wanted to marry me off to Jacob Fucking Black.

:::

_I entered the mansion, happily giggling with Rosalie as we watched Emmett try (and fail) in impersonating a bear, I mean, a GRIZZLY bear._

"_Oh just give it up Emmett!" Rose said. "All you'll ever end up looking like is a huge TEDDY bear!" she said as she jumped up and gave him a hug._

"_Ouch Rosie, that bruises the ego you know," he replied._

_Rosalie looked at him coyly and whispered in his ear (but I heard it anyway [mental cringe]) "Well, I plan on boosting that ego . . . tonight" _

_I shuddered and just in time, I heard my mom call me from my dad's study._

"_Bella! You're father and I need to talk to you!" Renée said from the doorway._

"_Coming!" I said as I climbed up the stairs. I entered the study to find my mom and my dad, and two other people inside. A man and an older man who looked like him so I assumed he was his father. Both had a muscular build, tall and looked like they were Native Americans._

"_Thank you for coming Bella," one of the men said, the father, I think._

"_Dad, mom, what is this?" I asked them, my face a mask of pure confusion._

_My dad cleared his throat. _Uh oh, this isn't good, _my dad always clears his throat before talking about things he'd much rather avoid._

"_Bella," he started, I could feel the nervousness radiating from him, I could feel it from my mom, from the two men and especially from me. _What happened? _I could feel my heart beating fast and hard and I swear it's going to pop out of my chest or make its way up my throat. _

What the fuck is going on?

_Dad cleared his throat again. "Bella, this is Jacob Black," he said, pointing to the younger man, who I admit looks quite handsome with his build and jet black hair. "And this is his father, Billy Black," he said pointing to the older man. "We're family friends; they own some of the biggest corporations here . . ." he trailed off._

"_Dad, it's something big, I know it, I can tell, so stop beating around the bush and get to the point!" I said impatiently._

_He was about to open his mouth when mom cut in: "Bella, you're 23 years old, it's about time you settle down, not just with any man, but with someone who can take care of you for the rest of your life and of the company"_

_I raised my eyebrow, "So is that why he's here? You want to marry me off to him, with no options?" I asked._

_Dad looked up at me, "Yes," was all he said._

_The room was still, waiting for my tirade, you could cut the tension with a _spoon.

_But my tirade never came. He looked nice, so I agreed. I felt like I owe it to my parents somehow. They never forced me into anything (except for this and those damn ballet lessons) and they gave me a good life that anyone would kill for. I didn't care then, there was no lover, and there wasn't anyone to leave behind. _

:::

I felt the hot tears forming in my eyes as I struggled to keep them at bay. I remembered the day that I made that damn decision, the decision that I thought would please everyone and make me happy just ended up being the one to hurt me, break me and hurt everyone.

And it was all that asshole's fault.

I know, in the back of my mind, that I could be blamed, that's why I'm paying for it now, but it was mostly HIS fault, and I don't see him paying up.

I hastily wiped away the tears that were threatening to fall. I would not cry for that damn asshole.

I saw some movement in the curtains once I finished drying my eyes, I saw Rosalie give me a signal and I nimbly climbed down the tree and headed for the outdoor cellar entrance.

I knew the mansion better than anyone else did since I was the one who researched it before my parents bought it back when I was thirteen; I never told them about the secret passages though. Only Emmett and his girlfriend, Rosalie, know.

I went down the cellar and pushed one a slightly different block from the ones making up the stone wall, it opened a well-concealed wooden door that I went into. I found the small table with a candle and matches that I put there years ago and I picked up the candle, then I lit it. I walked down the narrow expanse of the passage until I reached the door at the end and I gave it three quick raps and was answered by a light knock, which was the signal that it was safe to open the door. I pushed on it gently and on the other side was Rose, looking stunning as usual, her wavy blonde hair falling down her back in soft waves; she was smiling, overjoyed to see me back.

I blew the candle and put it down. "Hey Rose," I said, leaning forward to give her a hug. I felt her hug me back. "Bella, I missed you and Emmett misses you too. I know he'd want to be here but work calls," she said with a sigh.

"It's okay Rose, I'll be back soon anyway," I told her with a grin.

She nodded. "That's good, we need to see you more often . . ." she trailed off and narrowed her eyes at me.

"Something's up," she stated. "You're not usually this happy nor do you look so clean and polished when you go here all the time."

Shit, she noticed. Nothing ever gets past Rosalie.

"Hmmm?" I stalled, turning around and picking up midnight blue lingerie set which I've never used. _Maybe Edward would like this if we ever get . . . _carried away.

I felt Rose step closer to me. "Yeah, you're actually smiling!" her eyes zeroed in on the lingerie in my hands. "And since when did you pack lingerie?" she asked looking at me, her hands on her hips.

Before I could answer, realization dawned on her features and she smiled coyly at me, obviously answering her own question.

Shit, she figured it out!

"You met someone!" she said excitedly. "What's he like? Is he cute? Nice? How'd you meet? Is he good with his—"

"Shh Rose! Someone might hear you!"

She shook her head, smiling. "The house is empty, Bella dear. It's just you, me and the help who are cleaning outside. You have no escape and you have to give me details!" she said eagerly. _She reminds me of someone sometimes. _

I relented and pulled her down to sit with me on the floor. I sighed and cleared my throat, I was just like my dad and this was _definitely _something I would much rather avoid talking about.

"Yes, I met someone," I started.

"I KNEW IT!" she said loudly.

"SHHH! Keep it down! You don't want the whole neighborhood hearing!" I said.

"Sorry"

"Well anyway, as I was saying before I was _rudely interrupted," _I said, throwing a pointed look at Rose. All she gave me was a look saying: _well what did you expect me to do?_

"He's nice and cute, he looks _way better _than _he _did. I'm living with him and he's an angel. He always wants to take care of me and I-I feel like I don't deserve this kind of happiness and treatment after I ruined everyone else's and after what I put all of you through!" I said, a lone tear escaping my eye, it said more than a whole stream of tears would.

Rose hugged me. "Bella, don't be silly! Don't _ever _think that you are unworthy of this kind of happiness. It's not your fault that Jake was a complete asshole. He pushed you to your limits, limits that you have because you're human. It's natural to be pushed and it's natural to make mistakes. You just need to learn from it, and make it right. Telling me what happened before was a start so stop beating yourself up over it, ok?"

"You're right Rose, you know that?"

"Well, I am supposed to be right most of the time when dealing with that brother of yours. How do you think I keep Emmett in line so often?" she teased.

I sat up and smacked her shoulder. "Nice one Rose, now get up and help me pick out some clothes!" I said as I opened the sliding door to one of my wardrobes, the one containing the tops and dresses while Rose shuffled through the other one containing bottoms and underwear.

"Hey Bella," she asked. I turned around and saw her holding up a lacy, pearl colored, babydoll. "Have you and whoever your with done the deed yet?" she asked. She knew not to ask names since I never told but that didn't stop her from asking questions like these.

I blushed and turned back to what I was doing. "No, but it can't be long now," I replied, suddenly remembering the glazed over look of Edward's emerald eyes and the way he looked at me once I came from the bathroom yesterday.

Rose snickered. "Ok, we're _so _packing the babydoll!"

**Whew! That was a long one. I typed most of it in my iPod last night since I couldn't sleep and it's longer than the usual. So please review and spread this story too! (hey that rhymes!) **


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Not mine. **

**A/N Hey people! It's another update! **

**I would like to thank the people who reviewed on the previous chapter. THANK YOU! They make me smile :) **

**And sorry if it's a little late, I was working on the other stories as well.**

**By the way, PLEASE check out the poll on my profile! **

_

* * *

Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 5**

Ghosts?

_And just in time, I heard the water stop. . .

* * *

_

_Previously . . . _

"_Hey Bella," she asked. I turned around and saw her holding up a lacy, pearl colored, babydoll. "Have you and whoever your with done the deed yet?" she asked. She knew not to ask names since I never told but that didn't stop her from asking questions like these._

_I blushed and turned back to what I was doing. "No, but it can't be long now," I replied, suddenly remembering the glazed over look of Edward's emerald eyes and the way he looked at me once I came from the bathroom yesterday. _

_Rose snickered. "Ok, we're so packing the babydoll!"

* * *

_

**Edward's Point of View**

I looked at the post-it while I was driving. Her house wasn't _that _far, just a little near the outskirts of the city, where the nature is.

Honestly, I can't help but feel this adrenaline rush coursing through me—I am about to know more about my mystery woman—a lot more than she cares to tell me.

Ok, so the guilt of invading her privacy is practically eating me alive but I try to justify it with the thought that _she's _the one staying at _my _house without volunteering any information except a name—well, a _nickname. _Internally, I think I could say it's not even to _that _certain extent of snoopiness that I'm bending down to, I mean, I could hire a private investigator for a background on her like I usually do with some of my clients but no, I decide to do this on _myself._

_God, the things that woman does to me . . ._

I reached the large gates of a mansion. _A mansion, this looks as large as my mother's house too. _I double checked the address, that's what is said, and there were 2 large metal "S"s on the gate so I guess this is the right place—not exactly the home I thought she would be living in if she went around to random people's houses and slept there. . .

* * *

**Bella's Point of View**

While I was hunting around for some clothes, I heard the familiar creak of the main gates opening. _That meant someone's coming. _

I sprinted out of the closet and to my window, parting the drapes ever so slightly to peek at the approaching vehicle. My eyes widened at what I saw. _Oh god, it's _Edward's _Volvo! With _Edward _inside! How the hell did he get here? _

_GAH! That meant I had to tell Rose the truth. She's the only one that can help me. _

"Rose! Come here!" I whisper-yelled to her.

"What?" she whispered back. "And why are we whispering?"

I cleared my throat and went back to my regular speaking voice. "Rose, I am going to tell you something important and I need you to listen okay?" She nodded in response.

"That," I said, pointing to the incoming Volvo. "Is the car of the man I am with and that," I said, pointing to Edward. "Is Edward, the man that I am with"

I saw her eyes widen as she gasped. "Bella he is HOT!"

I blushed. "I know," I was suddenly pulled back to the sudden predicament. "But we don't have time for that! I have no idea how the hell he got my address but I need you to answer the door and give him the _story,_" I said, emphasizing "story" knowing that she got the point. She nodded. I chanced another peek at the window and saw that he was coming to the front door.

I shoved Rose out of my room. "He's coming to the door! Hurry up before someone sees him! GO!" I whispered to her as I slammed my door shut and locked it.

**

* * *

Rosalie's Point of View **

"Ok, ok, I'm going! I'm going!" I replied but I don't think she heard me because the door was already slammed shut.

I walked down the hall and into the foyer to answer the door. I stopped mid-way, noticing that he hadn't even knocked yet. I stepped into the arch that led to the living room and stood there until he knocked.

_Knock, knock. _

I moved once more and opened the door feigning indifference; I had to act like I didn't know he was coming.

"Hello there, how may I help you?" I asked him. _Whoa, Bella has taste. He is HOT! If I didn't have Emmett . . . well, never mind . . ._

"Good afternoon, I'm Edward Cullen and I'm just here to ask if an Isabella Marie Swan live here?"

I smirked on the inside. _Oh Edward . . . if you only knew . . ._

I put my sad, sullen face on immediately and I looked down. "Oh, she doesn't live here anymore. She was supposed to be my sister-in-law . . . she passed away a year ago" I said, wiping away a "tear" from my eye.

So many emotions danced across his face.

_Shock._

_Sadness._

_Sympathy._

_More shock._

_Disbelief._

_Awe._

"Bu—but, that's impossible! I know an Isabella Marie Swan and I most certainly know that she is living, breathing and _alive," _he told me. _Shit Bella, what have you gotten yourself into? _

I shook my head. "No, that's not true. She's dead and her body was buried." I told him.

He sighed in defeat. "Alright, thank you for your help Ms . . ."

"Hale," I answered. "Rosalie Hale, it was good meeting you."

He looked up at the sky and it also happened to be in the direction of Bella's bedroom window. His eyes widened. "Look! There she is, at that window!" he said pointing at her window.

I saw the curtains shuffle slightly but I pretended not to see it. _Bella . . .no peeking! _

"Um . . . I'm sure you're only imagining it." I told him

He mumbled something under his breath. I didn't quite catch it but I heard 'ghosts' and 'nuts'.

I smirked. "Well, thank you for coming Mr. Cullen," I told him.

"Thank you for being very helpful Ms Hale," he said with a curt nod as he turned on his heel and headed for his Volvo.

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

After Rosalie left the room, I kept feeling uneasy, like I _should _see what was happening.

_No Bella, no peeking, he might see you!_

_**No he won't, he'll be talking to Rose!**_

I took a deep breath. I will _not _under any circumstances peek!

I sat down on my bed and looked at the ceiling. After 5 minutes of tracing non-existent patterns on it, I got up.

_God! I can't take it anymore! Just _one _little peek won't hurt . . . _I thought as I moved the curtain aside ever so slightly.

I saw him talk to Rose and he looked up at the . . . at my window! And his eyes widened. I let the curtain fall back in place immediately.

_Crap! He saw me! Crapcrapcrappitycrap!_

I should've known. I mean, knowing my luck, he'd just _happen _to look at my window at the exact same time I peeked.

_Fate hates me. _

I sighed deeply as I leaned back against the window and rested my head on the cool glass, eyes closed, the glass not as cold since the rough texture of the thin curtains toned down the coldness of it.

I heard the door squeak and I opened my eyes to find Rosalie entering the room.

"How'd it go?" I asked her.

She smirked. "Better than expected, except now he thinks you're a ghost."

I groaned. "I'll explain it to him tonight. I just wasn't ready to tell him yet but I know I have to pull myself together and tell him the truth. For now, the front story should keep his mind running," I said with a smug smile.

"Oh girl, you're gonna scare him tonight!" she told me.

"Do you think I should bring the white nightgown with me?"

"I don't see why you shouldn't," she replied.

**

* * *

Edward's Point of View **

I drove away from Bella's house in a haze. My eyes were still wide.

But seriously . . . she's not dead!

_Is she?_

I mean, I've heard that ghosts only haunt significant places! And I didn't even know her until . . . well until she appeared next to me in bed.

And I know that ghosts don't take showers . . .

_Do they?_

And that they don't eat and get caught up in those extremely hot make-out sessions.

_God what is this woman doing to me? Ghost or no ghost, she is or was still a woman. . . _

_And a beautiful one at that . . ._

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

When nightfall came, I bid Rose goodbye and with my bag in tow, I headed back for Edward's place. I snuck past the guards but I had to roll in the bushes this time since I had to lug my bag of clothes around.

_Note to self: have Edward introduce me as guest and give me a spare key._

I climbed up the platforms towards the second floor and opened his bedroom window-slash-door. I peeked in his room and saw that it was empty but I heard water running from the bathroom. _He must be in the shower. _

I went in slowly, one foot in followed by another to avoid any accidents brought on by my inerasable clumsiness. I failed though, knowing how pathetic my luck is, and still managed to bump my head on the side of the doorframe.

_That's gonna bruise and hurt in the morning! _

I rubbed my forehead, careful of the tender spot where I could feel a bruise starting to form. I set my bag down near my purse and sat on the daybed off the side of the room.

I stared at my purse and noticed that I left it.

_Crap! That must be how he got my address!_

_Wait a second . . . he looked through my stuff?!_

_Oh that man is in trouble! _

I sat down deep in thought, thinking of ways on how to confront him on this matter without seeming like I was in the middle of mass hysteria and while debating with myself on whether or not I should tell him the truth.

_**Two minutes of Deep Thinking later . . **_

_You know what, he's probably going to pry it out of me anyway and I guess I owe him some explanation. Plus, I still think that he thinks I'm a ghost. I better change into that white nightgown and give him . . . a little scare. His face would be _so _worth it!_

I opened my bag and rifled through all the clothing that Rose picked out for me, feeling the silky texture of the white nightgown. I smiled evilly and took one last look at the bathroom door, ensuring that he was still showering and stripped out of my current clothes and into my nightgown. It was long and white and reached up to my knees. The fabric was semi-sheer with lace at the bodice. I made sure to wear the babydoll Rose packed for me underneath, in case he got a little . . .excited.

I grabbed my cosmetics bag and went to his mirror. I brushed some dark eyeliner around my eyes and blood-red lipstick on my lips to make my skin look paler. I also pinned my hair up with a couple of pearl-colored hair clips that I found in the bag. The pearl color of the babydoll was peeking out at some sections from underneath the nightgown when it hit the light. My face had some sort of odd luminescent glow to it. I looked at my reflection with a satisfied smirk.

_This will be so worth it. _

I hid my bags behind the daybed and sat down _innocently _on it, my legs tucked underneath me at my side. I casually draped my right arm over the edge of the daybed and waited for Edward to step out of the bathroom.

_And just in time, I heard the water stop. _

* * *

**So what do you think of this chapter? Pass or fail? Please tell me your comments of whatever in your reviews!**

**I won't be posting the next chapter until I get at least 10 reviews. Seriously.  
**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Not mine. **

**A/N Hey people! I would first of all, like to say a big THANK YOU to all the wonderful people who reviewed!! I love you guys! You rock! **

**Due to your overwhelming response in the last chapter. Namely, giving me the 10 reviews (actually more) that I wanted in the span of . . . 3 hours. Whoa -)  
**

**By the way, PLEASE check out the poll on my profile! **

**

* * *

**

_Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 6**

Electric

_It's like the playfulness and laughter dissolved and the air was charged with something more . . . electric.

* * *

_

_Previously . . . _

_I hid my bags behind the daybed and sat down innocently on it, my legs tucked underneath me at my side. I casually draped my right arm over the edge of the daybed and waited for Edward to step out of the bathroom._

_And just in time, I heard the water stop. _

_

* * *

_

**Edward's Point of View**

I arrived home still in my haze. I passed Angela at the door in a seemingly trance-like state and from my peripheral vision, saw that she had a look of utter confusion on her face. She was right to look like that; I probably looked hypnotized walking around like this.

_Well, actually, that's because I am. _

_I'm hypnotized. _

_By Bella. _

The fact that she could be a ghost kept on moving around my mind. She arrived here on her first night almost as if, by magic. She just suddenly appeared at my side. I couldn't imagine ever thinking or _fantasizing _about a woman—an unknown woman—suddenly appearing at my side when I wake up.

I tried to convince myself that this wasn't—couldn't—be real. It could all be a dream, a harmless dream that I haven't woken up from yet.

_But she felt so _real. _She smells real, she sounds real and hell, she definitely _looks _real! _

_**You know what Edward, I know what you need right now . . . what you need right now is a nice, long shower. Work has been getting to you.**_

And so that's where I found myself moments later, in the bathroom, taking a shower. My eyes were closed, thinking of every single moment I spent with her, looking—searching—for a sign that she wasn't real, that she was just a figment of my imagination or some part of my subconscious.

_And yet I couldn't find one thing that proved her to be unreal—nothing, nada, zip, none. _

Well of course, there's always that fact that she was too good to be true. I mean, as far as I'm concerned, I'm utterly and completely boring. I'm even sure that Tanya is marrying me for the same reason I'm marrying her—obligation, that, and for her, probably because she's really after what I have to offer her.

I went through my bizarre musings while at the same time, trying to relax and clear my head. That task proved to be an impossible feat since my head was swimming with images of her, her scent, her touch . . . her sound, her moans when we kiss, the feel of her soft, smooth skin under my fingers . . .

I groaned. _This is impossible!_

_**What's impossible, the part where she's a ghost or the part where you're not trying to think of her?**_

_The part where I'm trying not to think of her! _Duh.

_**Oh, well I can see why that's so hard to do. Speaking of hard things . . . **_

_GAH!_

**

* * *

Rosalie's Point of View**

After Bella left, I was still tidying up the mess we made in her closet. I have to make sure everything looked the way it was before.

_Not like anyone wanders in here anymore anyway._

A few months after Bella's "death", her mom and dad used to come here often to sit and just . . . be. When Emmett asked them why they keep doing that, they said it just gave them this sense of completion. Deep down, I know they blamed themselves for what happened to Bella. They could sense that she wasn't _really _happy . . . especially after Bella seemed so distant after the . . . disagreements. They never really knew or figured out what happened to her anyway, but they always blamed themselves for it. Now, they're rarely here anymore, leaving the house in Emmett's care 75% of the time.

They still live here of course, but usually they're up and around, traveling the world. It helps them . . . forget, if only for a little while. I've got to admit, I may be a bitch on the exterior, but I knew how they felt. It's not like Bella just went up to me and told me what happened after the burial.

_No way. _

She took a hell of a long time before she told me what happened. 3 months, the day after her parents left for Europe. She came to my room while I was asleep. I almost screamed because; well because I thought there was a ghost Bella in my room!

She told me the truth, the whole truth, and told Emmett everything too. She asked us not to tell anyone, to swear that this will be—and always be—just _our _secret. She couldn't tell her parents, as much as she wanted to, because it will put them in danger too. The risk was too great, so no matter how much it hurt her, she had to keep herself together and not screw it up.

Suddenly I remembered this afternoon when I convinced Edward that Bella was dead. _He'll be in for the same reaction I had when Bella came to my room. _

_God I'd love to see his face when that happens!_

I don't feel any resentment towards Bella for hiding it like she did; because at least she told me—and now she'll be telling Edward. If this is part of whatever plan she told me she had, I don't blame her. He seems like a really nice guy, and that comment, coming from me, means a lot.

_Good luck telling Edward, Bells, _I thought. _Let's hope you don't scare the living daylights out of him and send him running for the hills. _

**

* * *

Edward's Point of View**

I stepped out of the shower relieved and a little more relaxed. I was in my pajamas, the silky green ones, and I felt less frazzled.

_Well, I certainly _felt _less frazzled. FELT being the operative word. _

My eyes widened and I _froze_ as I took in the sight before me. Bella was in white, sitting on the daybed looking right at _me _with those . . . I don't know what to say about those yes. Her lips were blood-red and her skin took on this ethereal, luminescent glow . . .

_Oh God, this isn't the ghost is it? _

"B-Be-Bella, i-is that y-you?" I stuttered.

She smiled at me—taunting, seductive, coy. "Of course it's me Edward," she purred back at me.

_This isn't real! This can't be real! Why is she haunting me? Seriously!_

She got up and moved toward me, causing me to take a step back, and another, and another, and another until I fell down the bed with her hovering above me—not touching.

"W-wh-what do you want?" I managed to stutter out.

She looked at me innocently, those beautiful brown eyes widening. "Why what do you mean Edward?" she asked me, moving closer to my face.

"I just want . . . you," she purred, running her finger down my chest.

_I would be so turned on right now if I wasn't so terrified. _

Suddenly, she giggled.

_She laughed! What the . . .!?_

"Gotcha!" she said, leaping into my arms and hugging me tightly. She looked up at me from my chest, her chin resting on it. "I was kidding Edward," she said.

I must've looked confused because she added: "I'm not dead . . . nor am I a ghost," she stated, laughing again.

_She tricked me!_

"Why did you trick me?" I asked her.

She looked at me thoughtfully. "I didn't mean to Edward," she started. "I just . . . you needed to know the story more than you needed to know the truth, but I thought I could get a laugh out of it anyway," she ended it there.

"Am I ever going to find out what the truth is?" I asked her, pressing my luck.

She looked at me again, once more, deep in thought. "I promise to tell you . . . soon. You deserve to know anyway after all you've done for me."

"What have I done for you?" I asked her. All I did was be here. It was more like what _she _was doing for _me. _

"Hello? I'm a strange woman who you suddenly find sleeping next to you and you let me live here instead of calling the police! For all you know, I'm some serial mass-murderer at large and you're my next target!"

My eyes widened. _No, she can't be one—she looks too innocent, except for the fact that she's so damn sexy, not _that _type of innocent. _

Taking in my wide eyes, she said: "No Edward, I'm _not _a serial mass-murderer at large."

I let out a sigh of relief as she slapped my chest playfully.

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

After a beat of silence, the air around the room seemed to change.

It's like the playfulness and laughter dissolved and the air was charged with something more . . . electric.

I looked into Edward's eyes, he seemed to feel it too because his eyes were _smoldering. _I leaned in closer, crawling gently on top of him until he pushed my neck forward and my lips crashed to his in a long, drawn out kiss.

The night went on like that, full or whimpers and moans; and clothing being shed piece by piece and falling onto the floor. Edward and I were learning each other's body in ways I only imagined in my dreams. His chest glistened in the moonlight, making him look like the god that he really is.

_And yes, if you're wondering . . . Edward did see the babydoll._

_Let's just say . . . he liked it better . . . _off.

* * *

I opened my eyes slowly, adjusting them to the sunlight filtering its way through Edward's windows.

Memories of last night flooded my brain in whiplash as I remembered every painstaking detail of last night.

_Yes, we did the deed. And I was very, _very _satisfied._

I turned around to find Edward asleep on his back, with his arm still managing to wrap around my waist. I moved a little closer to get a better look at this sleeping angel and he tightened his grip on me. I smiled. _I guess someone has the Teddy Bear Reflex. _

I noticed a stray tuft of hair falling over his forehead and before I could control it, my hand swept up to brush it away from his face. I saw the corners of his lips turn up in a smile. "Good morning Beautiful," he murmured to me.

I snuggled into him. "It certainly is," I said.

"How did you sleep last night?"

I stretched and arched into him. "_Very _well," I purred in his ear. He finally opened his eyes and I found myself looking up at those beautiful green orbs.

"I'm going to take a shower," I told him, getting up and giving him a full _view. _I smiled coyly at him and winked, leaving him groaning as he plopped his head back on the pillow.

**

* * *

Edward's Point of View**

_Can my life get any better?_

I laid back into the pillows thinking about the events of last night in a very slow play-by-play. I put on my clothes with a shit-eating grin on my face. _Can my life get any better? _I asked myself again.

Now that I thought about it . . . I think it could only get worse.

_Shit, I forgot all about Tanya. Why exactly am I marrying her again? Oh yeah. Obligation. _

_I can fix this, I can fix this. I just need . . . time. _

Suddenly there was a knock on the door and Angela entered just as Bella stepped out in a robe (thank God!) and drying her long mahogany hair with one of my towels.

"Good morning Ed—" she stopped, looking at Bella in shock. She didn't seem to notice since she was facing away from the door. I looked at her and subtly motioned to Angela standing on the doorway. She got the picture and turned around, flashing her one of her most charming smiles.

"Good morning Angela," she told her. "I'm Bella, a friend of Edward's. I know you're probably wondering how I got here, but actually, I arrived late last night after you were all asleep because my plane got delayed. Edward just told me to stay here for now," she lied flawlessly.

_She's good . . . in more ways than one. _

_**Get your mind out of the gutter Edward!**_

_Out of the gutter, got it. _

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Bella," Angela replied, smiling at her. "By the way, breakfast is ready at the patio in case you get hungry," she said and left the room, shutting the door behind her. I heard Bella let out a breath of relief.

"She's gone," I told her, standing behind her and wrapping my arms around her waist.

She turned around and faced me, wrapping her arms around my neck and kissing me deeply. "Yeah, and since she mentioned breakfast . . . after last night's workout," she winked at me. "I'm starving. Let's dress up and go," she said as she untangled herself from me and went to her bag.

_Hey, she didn't have a bag here yesterday._

_Where'd she get it?_

"Hey Bella, where'd you get your bag?" I asked her. She gave me a pleading look.

"Just give me time and I'll tell you everything," was all she said. I nodded in response. "Ok"

**

* * *

So there you go everyone! Here is the next chapter! I hope you liked it, pass or fail? I'm sorry if it's a little rough or something but I really wanted it out here before I left for vacation :)  
**

**See you all again in 4 days! I promise to post an update by . . . Wednesday afternoon.  
**

**Again, I would like to thank all the wonderful people who reviewed!**

**Please review again for this one! All I ask for is 10 before I post the next one when I get back. **

**Coming up: Chapter 7 – Poolside Stories **

_It's just that, when you love someone, they deserve more of a thank you than an "I love you too". _


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello everyone! I'm back! And here's the latest chapter of Through Your Window. Also, I would like to thank all the people who reviewed because, seriously, the fact that you actually take time to review makes me smile :)**

**Sorry if it's a little late, but hey, the chapter was LONG! And remember when I said I'd update Wednesday? Yeah, I got banned from the computer *rolls eyes***

**I started typing it into the computer Thursday and finished today. SORRY GUYS! Especially to balletlover, sorry!**

**By the way, PLEASE check out the poll on my profile! **

_

* * *

Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 7**

Poolside Stories

"_It's just that, when you love someone, they deserve more of a thank you than an 'I love you too'"_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

_Hey, she didn't have a bag here yesterday._

_Where'd she get it?_

"_Hey Bella, where'd you get your bag?" I asked her. She gave me a pleading look. _

"_Just give me time and I'll tell you everything," was all she said. I nodded in response. "Ok" _

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

When I told Edward to give me time, he just nodded and accepted it. I felt my heart swell with love for him, because, well, no one has ever just "_nodded and accepted" _when it came to me. The inquisition was always there, the truth lying somewhere near the bottom, a place that the others wanted to reach instead of just leaving it be.

I looked up at Edward and saw nothing but complete understanding in his eyes as he looked back at me. "Do you want to get breakfast?" he asked me.

"Sure"

A couple of minutes later; completely dressed and ready to go, we headed down the stairs to the patio in silence. While watching each step I take going down, I was having a mental dilemma.

The _Truth. _

_God, why is it always haunting me! _It's like it's _taunting _me or something.

The truth has always been there, sitting on the underside, waiting to be revealed. I just wasn't sure if I _wanted _to reveal it to Edward. My heart was saying that it was the _right _thing to do, but my mind was saying that the _smart _thing to do was to just keep it to myself.

_Heart or mind?_

_Mind or heart?_

_Both?_

_Neither?_

It just leaves me completely confused.

When we sat down at the table . . . my heart won. _I was going to tell him._

_There _must _be something wrong with me. _

And I'm _still confused. _

_

* * *

_

Throughout the whole of breakfast, Edward and I talked about a lot of things, but mostly about ourselves. I've never found myself being this truthful _ever. _It was like there was something in _him _that just lured me in and caused me—the self-assured Bella Swan—to be a bumbling idiot and as always, leaving me confused with every unexpected reaction.

We had pleasant conversation and it never turned out awkward because I'm sure Edward was giving me my much needed time. He was careful to dodge any sensitive subject and for that, I was grateful but in the back of my mind, the truth was still there—lingering. I was trying to come up with ways on how to tell him without causing him to run away in terror or look at me in pity like Rose and Emmett had.

_I am not a pity-party._

"Bella?" I felt Edward's hand on my mine as he spoke my name softly. I looked up at him, realizing that I'd been staring at my empty plate that once held my breakfast.

"Uh . . . yeah?"

"Are you alright? Your face looked somewhat vacant for awhile there . . ." he said.

"Oh! No, I'm fine. I was just . . . a million miles away," I saw the look of confusion on his face. I patted his hand. "I'll tell you soon," I said. He nodded.

Now, it seemed to be Edward's turn to look a little vacant. "Edward? Are _you _okay?"

He smiled at me. "Of course I am, love. I was just thinking that maybe, if you're okay with the idea, that is, that maybe we could go to the villa I own?"

I looked at him incredulously. "You have a villa? Here? We're in New York!"

He looked at me smugly. "It's at the Hamptons by Long Beach so it's a bit of a drive, but we'll get there. Plus, it's the weekend; we can stay there for a little while . . ." he trailed off. I knew _exactly _what he had in mind. I matched his smug grin with one of my own.

"Sure, let's go!" I told him.

He looked surprised. "Just like that?"

I looked at him with a coy smile and winked as I stood up. "Just like that"

* * *

I headed up the stairs to Edward's room to pack but I was held back by Angela.

"Miss Bella?" She asked me shyly. "May I talk to you?"

"Of course you can, Angela, and please, call me Bella," I replied. She motioned for me to follow her to the kitchen for privacy. She looked around for awhile and faced me after seeing that Edward went to read the paper and Jessica went to talk to Mike, the gardener.

"Can I ask you a question?" she asked me. I laughed softly. "You already have, but go ahead," I replied.

"I know it's not my place but . . . what exactly are you to Edward?" she asked me shyly.

_What am I to Edward? _

"I . . . I'm not sure. Friend, girlfriend, possibly," I told her.

She smiled. "Honestly, I really like you for him. You're much nicer than Tanya," she said.

_Tanya? Now that piques my curiosity._

"Tanya?" I asked her. "Who's Tanya?"

She looked down sheepish. "She's his . . . fiancée."

_Fiancée!? What am I, the other woman? _I've never felt so . . . betrayed and at the same time, guilty with a dash of apprehension in my life, given the fact that the aforementioned feeling was quite unusual for me.

Angela must've noticed the _look _on my face because she spoke up quickly. "Bella, please don't think whatever it is you're thinking. You're _not _the other woman! I swear that Tanya is such a bitch!" she said, her eyes widening and her hands suddenly flying to cover her mouth once she realized what she had said about Tanya.

"I'm so sorry about that, sometimes I just can't stop the word vomit," she told me sheepishly.

"I-uh, no! It's alright," I told her. "I just don't quite . . . understand . . ."

She looked reluctant to tell me whatever the next piece of information was. She had this calculating look on her face. After what seemed like a lengthy inner debate, she looked at me. "It's not really my story to tell; you're better off asking Edward yourself but . . . please remember that Tanya means nothing to him but an obligation. He has to marry her but you . . . I see that you're better for him—the best, actually. I've never seen him smile so much and his smile is so _genuine_. I guess it had something to do with you since he's been like this even a few days before you got here," she told me happily.

"So . . . Edward _doesn't _want to marry Tanya?" I clarified. She nodded. "So why is he marrying her?"

She sighed. "Like I said, Bella . . . it's not my story to tell. Please, just keep an open mind," she said.

I took a deep breath. _Was I ready for this, for trust? _

_**You know, you'll never find out if you don't try.**_

_Why don't you just shut up?_

_**Hey, I'm this voice in your head; I go on a come-when-needed basis. You obviously need me, so here I am.**_

_I hate you sometimes._

_**I love you all the time—not like I have much of a choice but I love you just the same. **_

_I'm going nuts._

_**Sure you are . . . **_

_I guess I'm ready then._

_**That's what I wanna hear.**_

_What _you _wanna hear? But aren't you . . . uh, me?_

_**Yeah, it's what your **_**heart **_**wants to hear—no more questions.**_

_Alright . . . _

"I guess so . . ." I told her tentatively. She gave me a warm smile.

"Well, I better get packing, Edward's taking me somewhere today," I told her.

"Oh sure, go ahead! I'm sorry for keeping you," she looked at me ruefully.

"No it's fine, I'm glad for this little piece of information you shared. At least I won't be shocked like hell when he _does _tell me," I said with a laugh.

"Well I'm glad to be helpful"

* * *

A few moments later, I was sitting on the daybed and going through my things while Edward was flipping through his shirts in a manner that looked more like he was flipping through file folders. That thought made me giggle, which, in turn, made Edward look at me with raised eyebrows.

I covered my mouth. "It's nothing. You'd probably find it weird when I tell you that the way you flip through your clothes is oddly entertaining to watch."

"It is?" he asked me.

"Yeah, you look like you're flipping through file folders," I mumbled.

He shrugged. "I guess I'm just weird like that," he said.

* * *

The drive to the Hamptons was sort of . . . long despite the fact that Edward drove like a maniac—it half turned me on and half scared me to death. Luckily, we never even so much as swerved. He was holding my hand for almost the whole trip and I would squeeze it every time the speedometer read anywhere above 85.

_Yeah, call me a chicken. _

When Edward caught view of the house, he parked into the small driveway and helped me out. He picked up my bags, swung them over his shoulder, took my hand and led me inside.

The house was gorgeous. The lawn was green, giving it the whole "suburban" feel. There were several flower bushes leading up to the eloquent front door. There was a small entryway, each with doors leading to the dining room, the living room and the pool deck outside. The stairs to the second floor were made of mahogany and shone so brightly, that I could see my reflection on the handrails.

"So, how do you like the house so far?" Edward asked me. I looked up at him, a bright smile on my face. The mansion I used to live in was on the upper east side of New York, a place made mostly for shopping and city transit—it was more of a "Rose Zone" than a "Bella Zone" but this—this house was great! It was everything I wanted—simple and comfy.

"I think it's perfect, I mean, look at it!" I said, gesturing wildly around the foyer. "It's gorgeous!"

"My Aunt Esme decorated it," he said sheepishly, probably thinking he was weird since he had his aunt decorate his rest house.

I smiled at him. "Well, tell her that she has great taste"

He flashed me a crooked grin. "Will do, now, do you want to see the rest of the house?" he asked me, holding out his hand to me as he went up the first two steps on the stairs.

"Duh," I replied, taking his hand as we went up.

The halls upstairs were decorated in the same manner the downstairs was. It looked comfy with that hint of masculinity, yet still welcoming without looking like a bed and breakfast or a farmhouse.

He opened the door at the far end of the hall. "This," he said, gesturing around the room after he lowered our bags. "Will be our room."

I stared in awe at the master bedroom. It had this slightly rustic feel to it from the floral design on the bed and all the wooden furniture.

"You can unpack now or whatever and if you want to freshen up, the bathroom is through here," he said, pointing to a door on the far end of the room. "I'll start lunch"

I nodded. I just couldn't get over how _natural _it felt to be with him. It was so _easy _despite the heavy baggage we both possess. It's like this pull that's saying _I won't stop 'til you two get together, so dammit! Get together!_

I giggled at that thought.

The closet was big enough for all our clothes to be in and after a while, I noticed that I unpacked Edward's clothes as well. _I hope he doesn't mind. _

I entered the bathroom—which was _huge _and _spacious—_to freshen up. The sink was made of marble, and there was a tub, also made of marble and a shower in the corner, made to blend in with everything else. _This house is the epitome of perfection—you can really see the effort put into it. _

I washed my face quickly and headed down to the kitchen to see how Edward progressed with lunch. Halfway down the stairs, my senses were immediately assaulted with the smell of tomato sauce and the sound of water boiling. I peeked at Edward from the kitchen doorway and saw that he was making spaghetti Bolognese. _That man knows how to charm a woman!_

I wrapped my arms around his waist from behind and he leaned back gently against me, almost as if he was expecting it.

"How's lunch going?" I asked him.

"Very well, and if you'll just sit down, I will serve it in a moment," he said with a grin.

I sat down at the dining table, running my hands over the shiny wood and feeling the faint grooves on it. Edward came turned around and set two plates full of steaming, hot pasta on the table.

* * *

A plate of pasta and a glass of coke later, Edward and I were sitting on the chaise lounges on his pool deck, just watching the water as it shimmered when it was hit by sunlight.

We were sitting in silence, each of us probably wondering how to broach the subject that was just hanging in the air.

"Edward?" I said, as I turned to him. He looked at me.

"Can I ask you a question?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Sure, you know I'll tell you anything," he said to me with a half smile. _God, now I feel guilty for hiding so much from him!_

"Who's Tanya?" I asked as I watched him stiffen and look out onto the horizon.

"Tanya is . . . my fiancée, if you could call her that—since I certainly can't," he started with a sigh. I touched his arm sympathetically.

"Angela told me . . ." I started.

He turned sharply toward me. "She did?"

"I promised her that I'd keep an open mind. You can tell me, I'll understand, I promise."

He sighed—long and deep. "I should start from the beginning . . ." he trailed off.

"You should, I suppose," I mumbled.

He motioned for him to come nearer to him, so I got up from my chaise and sat in front of him, my back against his chest as he started his story.

"My parents were Elizabeth and Edward Cullen Senior. They were the original owners of Cullen Incorporated. They were friends with a man named Eleazar Denali, who had a daughter . . ."

". . . Tanya," I finished for him.

"Exactly. We sort of grew up together, but as each year passed and we got older, she got more and more conceited, self-centered and I started to think that she just wanted me for what I had to offer, but it was natural that I marry her, I'm rich, she's rich, it goes without saying. I agreed to it since I knew I had nothing else to lose, and because my parents were really thrilled and set on that idea."

He took another deep breath, slightly shuddering. I could feel the vibrations of his chest against my back.

"My parents died in a car accident two years ago, and I inherited the company. For a while, Tanya was behind me full force that I felt like I had an actual fiancée instead of one that seemed known but non-existent. Now, two years later, she's back to the distant girl I knew, barely participating in wedding plans. The wedding is in 6 months."

I inhaled sharply. _That's not too far away. _I thought sadly.

"But I want to call it off" he said firmly. That caused me to look up at him, almost hitting my head on his chin.

"What? Why?" I asked him.

"Because of you," was all he said, looking down adoringly at me. I managed a weak smile in return. _He really is out there to make me feel guilty! _

"I only agreed to marry her since I knew I had nothing else. My parents may have been thrilled at the idea, and I did it to please them. But before my mom took her last breath in the hospital. . ." he sighed. "She told me . . . to be happy. I only stuck with the idea of the marriage since I never _knew _what happiness could be--until I met you . . ." he trailed off again.

_I will not cry. I will not cry. I will NOT cry!_

"Edward . . . I-I'm flattered! Really . . . but, are you sure? I mean, you barely know me! You've known me what . . . 2 days?"

"I know that," he replied calmly. "But I also know that I _wlll _be able to have the chance to get to know you even if it's not today or tomorrow. I just feel that you will somehow open up to me. And if you leave, at least I know in my heart that I loved someone," he said, looking off again.

_Did he just say he loves me?_

_Do I love him?_

_Well of course I do!_

I smiled, laughing silently. "Did you just . . . in your own, difficult way, admit that you love me?" I asked him, blushing.

HE hugged me tighter against him and kissed the top of my head. "Yes. I love you Isabella Marie Swan, despite what you think you lack and despite the things you think you have to hide—I love _you."_

I couldn't help it. I cried and kissed his lips as his thumb wiped away the tears from my cheeks. "Thank you," I whispered as I lay my forehead on his.

"For what?" he asked me, puzzled.

"It's just that, when you love someone, they deserve more of a thank you than an 'I love you too'. You love me for who I am, not what I have or decide on whether or not you love me based on what I _don't _have. You don't mind it that I keep secrets from you and—and despite the fact that I _know _you can see in me that I feel like I don't deserve you, which I don't, you disregard it anyway."

"Is that a bad thing?"

I smiled and kissed him again. "No, because I love you too."

_Crap, now I KNOW I have to tell him the truth. How do I get into situations like this?_

**

* * *

*Wipes forehead and brow* That was a long one! And to think the font was only size 9! So, pass or fail? Or in between? Tell me!**

**Again, I apologize for the late update! I typed my fingers off trying to finish this one! **

**I also ask for 10 reviews again before I post the next one :) **


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello all! *waves at people staring at their computer screens* Here's another installment of Through Your Window!**

**Yes . . . you can find out what happens to Bella. Or not. **

**It depends on Bella if she wants to tell you, ya know? **

**The song for this chapter is "Stranger" by Hilary Duff. I actually thought up everything in this chapter before I heard the song—then when I heard it, I was like—WHOA! It fits SO well! So I suggest listening to it while reading this chapter—start from the flashback scene **

**And PLEASE PLEASE look at the poll on my profile. And . . . if you don't know the other stories, I suggest READING them ;)**

**

* * *

**

_Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 8**

Those Truths

_Nobody believes me when I tell them that you're out of your mind.  
Nobody believes me when I tell them that there's so much you hide.  
You treat me like a queen when we go out,  
Wanna show everyone what our love's about.  
All wrapped up in me whenever there is a crowd,  
But when no one's around;_

_There's no kindness in your eyes,  
The way you look at me, it's just not right.  
I can tell what's going on this time,  
There's a stranger in my life.  
You're not the person that I once knew.  
Are you scared to let them know it's you?  
If they could only see you like I do,  
Then they would see a stranger too..._

_Did I ever do anything that was this cruel to you?  
Did I ever make you wonder who was standing in the room?  
You made yourself look perfect in every way,  
So when this goes down, I'm the one that will be blamed.  
Your plan is working so you can just walk away,  
Baby your secret's safe_

_Such a long way back, from this place we arrived.  
When I think of all the time I've wasted, I could cry..._

_-Stranger by Hilary Duff_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

_I couldn't help it. I cried and kissed his lips as his thumb wiped away the tears from my cheeks. "Thank you," I whispered as I lay my forehead on his. _

"_For what?" he asked me, puzzled. _

"_It's just that, when you love someone, they deserve more of a thank you than an 'I love you too'. You love me for who I am, not what I have or decide on whether or not you love me based on what I don't have. You don't mind it that I keep secrets from you and—and despite the fact that I know you can see in me that I feel like I don't deserve you, which I don't, you disregard it anyway."_

"_Is that a bad thing?"_

_I smiled and kissed him again. "No, because I love you too."_

_Crap, now I KNOW I have to tell him the truth. How do I get into situations like this?_

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

_This is a _delicate _situation._

Why is it delicate, you ask? Well, maybe it's because you're telling the _love of your life _the truth about your past and your own . . . _identity. _

It just gets harder and _harder, doesn't it? _

My memories started to surface as I remembered each and every detail that happened in the past. Flashes of those moments were starting to come out of the closet I locked them in. It's like the closet was shaking and the locks were falling _one by one._ I stared out into the water, in Edward's comforting arms, thinking of things like this.

_How do you approach a conversation topic like this?_

"Edward?" I asked him. _Wow, that's a start. _I thought with heavy sarcasm.

He looked at me curiously.

"Remember when I told you I'd tell you of my past?"

He nodded silently, sensing how delicate this topic was for me. I was touched at how quickly he could sense these things. I never felt this way with Jacob. Not this fast and definitely _not _this way.

"Well . . . I'm ready to tell you," I murmured with a deep breath and a heavy sigh.

He looked at me with nothing but love and understanding in his eyes. _How did I get so lucky?_

"Are . . . are you sure you want to tell me? We haven't known each other for a long time and I completely understand if you're not ready. I'm willing to wait—you know I am. And I'll keep an open mind as you did when I told you of my past."

I chuckled darkly. "Yeah, you may want to remember that when I start my story. Your past isn't as twisted as mine is," I said, mumbling the last part.

He sighed into my hair. "Bella, Bella, Bella. When will you ever understand that I'll be right here? _I'm not going anywhere_," he said the last part of that statement, enunciating each word, his eyes pleading for me to understand.

"Alright, I believe you, but you are _too _good to me Edward Cullen."

"No, it is _you _who is too good to me Ms. Swan," he said with a light laugh. I slapped his arm playfully.

"Ok, enough laughing. I'm going to tell my story now, and believe me, it's not pretty."

"I don't care about pretty or ugly. The past is the past—what matters is _now _and what is going to happen." Was all he said before settled in.

I took a deep breath. _I'm going to need this. _

_

* * *

Flashback! ~The Upper East Side: Two years ago~_

"Jacob?" I said, looking through his dark apartment. "Are you there?" I spoke into the empty space and was met with silence. I sighed sadly. _Where was he? _

Suddenly, the lights in the kitchen turned on and a bunch of people jumped up and yelled "Surprise!" as balloons and the sounds of party poppers filled the air and at the same time, I felt Jacob's warm arms around my waist and place a kiss on the crown of my head. "Happy birthday, Bells," he greeted me.

I felt tears spring to my eyes at the sight of all the people I loved standing before me with an enormous birthday cake. I can't believe he arranged all of this! Asking me to come to his place for dinner on my birthday sure, I expected that. But this?

"Happy birthday sweetie!" my mom yelled as she barreled into me. Jacob, the brick wall that he was, kept me from falling over.

"Happy birthday kiddo," my dad mumbled next to me with a smile as he handed me a small box that was my birthday gift.

"Dad, I told you, no gifts!" I whined as I tried to give it back to him.

"Sweetheart, you'll love it, trust me," he replied, pushing the box back towards me and walking towards the cake before I could retort.

I turned to Jacob and gave him a kiss. Ever since the announcement of the arranged marriage, we were getting along great. We transitioned from being good friends to actually lovers. I couldn't believe that I was actually making something positive to what others would call hell on earth. I learned to love Jacob and I knew he loved me. He was always so nice to me—attending to my every whim. I actually couldn't wait for us to get married. It's already been . . . 6 months. Five of which were the best of my life with exception of the first which was the "awkward stepping stone" stage for both of us. My dad wouldn't have it though; he said we'd get married when I turned 25. It was my 24th birthday today, so that left me with one more year. _One year I'm sure will be the beginning of many wonderful years to come. _

"_Edward," I told him when saw the confused look on his face as I relayed the beginning of my story. "I had a fiancé named Jacob Black. It was an arranged marriage, similar to what you and Tanya have going on. Mine, on the other hand, was really going well. This is just the beginning of the tale Edward," I said, putting my hand on top of his and lacing our fingers together. He nodded and motioned for me to continue._

_

* * *

Flashback! ~The Upper East Side: A year and a half ago~_

I checked my phone for the umpteenth time today, sighing and watching my breath in front of me caused by the chilly winter air. I turned my coffee cup around and around in my hands, staring at it idly while waiting for Jacob to get here. I checked my watch--again, it was 4:00. He was an hour late.

_Not that it wasn't anything different these days._

_He's always late._

_He almost _never _comes home._

Jacob and I started living together 2 months after my birthday. It was great, almost as if we really _were _married. When it began, it was like the "honeymoon stage" of any relationship. Nothing had changed until a month ago.

I kept convincing myself that he was just busy. It was the reason why he doesn't like me stopping by at work—it distracts him. I knew he was stressed and that was why he was so short-tempered with me.

I saw a flash of what I thought could be him across the street with . . . a woman.

_No, it can't be him, he's still at work. _I told myself but the nagging feeling was there and I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I got up and followed him, thankful that I'd already paid for my coffee earlier.

I put my hair down from my ponytail and pulled the collar of my coat on. I felt like some sort of bizarre spy or that creepy, insecure wife in the movies who spied on their husbands. All I needed was the fedora hat to complete the look.

I walked fifteen paces behind them, making sure to look nonchalant and stare at the shop windows every so often but keeping them in my peripheral vision. The man looked like Jacob, and he was wearing was what I noticed was missing from his closet when he left the apartment this morning. I, of course, had not been awake yet when he left--it wasn't anything different to what I was used to these days.

The man had his arm around a beautiful brunette—as I could tell from her profile when she took a look at the window of a jewelry shop. She had beautiful olive skin and long hair. She was tall and statuesque, as far as I could tell she reached the tall man's ear.

They walked to a small park off the street and I followed them, sitting on a park bench and watching them interact. When they turned around so I could get a good view of them, I saw . . . Jacob.

_The cheating bastard!_

_**Slow down Bella! You don't even know if he's actually **_**cheating **_**on you. **_

I saw Jacob place a feverish kiss on the woman's lips.

_**Alright, so you **_**do **_**know that he's cheating on you. **_

So that explained the late nights, the unexcused absences, all the cancelled dates and the short temper. He was cheating on me. Did that mean I don't have to marry him anymore?

After seeing him pull that stunt, I'm sure that I don't want to marry him anymore. It's like my perfect bubble just got popped.

I chanced another look at the "happy couple" and realized that I recognized the woman. She was Leah Clearwater, Jacob's secretary. I saw her at a few company functions and dinners at their family mansion. All those times he'd stay by my side and "excuse himself" to talk to some guests he'd probably gone to have a quickie with Leah. I always thought nothing of the looks and glances they gave each other; turns out I'm in the middle of a lover's tryst. Those glances held longing, lust and promises to meet at those times when I _thought _that Jacob was at work.

I felt like such a fool. He played me.

"_He's a sick, lying bastard!" Edward growled when he heard the end of that part of the story. "I can't believe he would be so stupid as to let an angel like you go," he said sadly, looking at me. His sad demeanor was suddenly replaced with one of happiness. "I think I ought to thank him though," he said smiling at me._

_I furrowed my brows together. "Are you crazy? Why?"_

"_His loss is _my _gain," he replied, pulling me closer as I continued my tale._

_

* * *

Flashback! ~The Upper East Side: That same day-10:00pm~_

I knew I had to confront Jacob. It was the only way I could be free from him and be single again. I waited on the couch for him to come home, another cup of coffee in hand. I needed to stay awake for this.

I heard the doorknob jiggle as Jacob opened the door and stepped inside. I stood up and looked at him.

"Jacob," I said calmly.

"What?" He replied, obviously irritated as he dropped his briefcase to the side of the door and threw his coat on the couch.

"We need to talk"

He scratched his head and ran his hand down his face. "Can't it wait? I'm tired. You can tell me in the morning," he said, heading for the bathroom. I blocked his way.

"Oh sure! We could _always _talk in the morning—if you were actually there!" I said, sarcasm and acid laced my already angry tone.

"Fine Bella, what is it?" he asked, frustrated.

"I know you're cheating on me Jacob Black. I _saw _you with my own two eyes! You're cheating on me with Leah Clearwater! Just tell me now so I can leave and call the engagement off," I said, crossing my arms in front of my chest defiantly.

His eyes darkened at he started turning red--he snapped. I was caught off guard when he pushed me against the wall and held my neck firmly with his hand. I couldn't breathe—it hurt so much!

"Listen to me Bella and _listen well_," he hissed into my ear, his hand tightening its grip on my neck. "You are under _no circumstances _allowed to question what I do. You _will _marry me and you _will _like it! Remember, your daddy dearest signed over a contract during our engagement saying that I get full reign of the company once we get married. If you don't comply, something just might happen to you . . . or maybe to your mom or your dad," he sneered. "We wouldn't want that, would we?" he asked.

"N-n-no," I managed to get out through my lack of air. He relaxed his grip on me. "That's a good girl," he said in my ear, his breath felt disgusting and dirty.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked him angrily.

"Easy, the answer is money and power. Once we get married, I will merge the two companies together to become the biggest company in the country. Effectively, I will also have all your father's connections alongside mine and the family fortune that you'll inherit that we'll _share _once you sign that marriage contract. If you think about a divorce, well, let's just say that I have _very _good lawyers on my side that will take _everything _away from you. If you try to deny me marriage, I'll threaten you into it, starting with the lives of the ones you love the most," he said in a dark tone.

"Y-you won't get away with this!" I told him.

He looked at me condescendingly. "I won't? Why? What can _you _do? Tell your daddy? Not a chance, I already have the old man eating out of the palm of my hand--they love me! When your family hears that you accuse of me such thing, I can turn them all against you," he said, narrowing his eyes violently at me.

I was shaking when he finally let go of me and he walked into the bathroom. I ran to the bedroom and grabbed my bag, packed all my things into it as fast as I could and ran to the guest room. I locked the door and sat down on the bed and I cried and cried. As much as I wanted to do something about it, I had to consider my family in the equation now.

_End of flashbacks_

* * *

Edward's grip on my waist tightened as I saw his set jaw. I swore I could see smoke coming out of his ears. "When I thought he was a bastard he just had to prove himself and get himself a rank higher on the "complete asshole scale" I just think that Jacob is scum!" he said loudly.

I patted his arm reassuringly. "I'm safe now, remember?" I told him with a kiss. "I'm with you, but the story isn't over yet. Don't you want to hear about how I got here?" I asked him.

"Yeah, I guess so. Not that it really matters to me _how _you got here, just the fact that you're here is enough for me," he said, kissing my forehead.

"Awww, you're sweet, but you have to know this part the most," I told him.

"Why?"

"It's the most important part of the story. And after you hear it, it could make up your mind on whether you want to help me or not," I said with a sigh.

"Well I'm all ears," he replied.

**

* * *

And so it ends there! For now *evil laugh* Pass or fail?**

**You now know the beginning of Bella's tale. You didn't actually think I'd give away the whole thing in one chapter, did you?**

**15 reviews if you want to know what happened to Bella! Please? With sugar on top? **


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello all again! *waves at people staring at their computer screens even though I know you can't see me* Here's another installment of Through Your Window! And it's actually early since you all reviewed and it's so wonderful that I want to give you all big cyber hugs! Or . . . settle for hugging my computer screen. Wait, no, never mind. I don't want to look like a nutcase.**

**Now you can find out what **_**else **_**happened to Bella! **

**And please check the poll! Like I said, if you don't know the other stories, I suggest reading them. *wink wink*  
**

_

* * *

Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 9**

Those _Other_ Truths

_It is no disgrace to start all over. It is usually an opportunity - George Matthew Adams_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

_I patted his arm reassuringly. "I'm safe now, remember?" I told him with a kiss. "I'm with you, but the story isn't over yet. Don't you want to hear about how I got here?" I asked him. _

"_Yeah, I guess so. Not that it really matters to me how you got here, just the fact that you're here is enough for me," he said, kissing my forehead. _

"_Awww, you're sweet, but you have to know this part the most," I told him._

"_Why?"_

"_It's the most important part of the story. And after you hear it, it could make up your mind on whether you want to help me or not," I said with a sigh. _

"_Well I'm all ears," he replied. _

_

* * *

Flashback! ~Jacob's Apartment: A year and 4 months ago~_

_I have never felt so helpless._

I looked back to week ago when I went to _my _house and talked to my family. I started with my parents who—obviously—did not believe me.

"He's a good man Bella," my dad said. Looking at me with a smile and pride in his eyes as he envisioned his only daughter, marrying a man whom he _knew _was perfect for her and would take care of her.

_If only you knew dad. If only you believed me. But you don't, unfortunately—for me. _

"And he's _very _charming!" My mom added. Like my dad, she was imagining me, on my wedding day, glowing with pride and happiness. _I, _on the other hand, imagined myself cold and cowering in a corner on my wedding day.

_Mother! Of all times for you to be _not _perceptive!_

I left my father's study, dejected, as Jacob's words rang in my ears. _I can make them turn against you. _

_He wouldn't dare, would he?_

As I was pondering these things I was walking slowly through the mansion halls, my fingers trailing lightly over the wooden paneling. My feet making muffled sounds on the carpet.

He seemed so _sure _of himself, like he thought his plan was solid. I _had _to find cracks in there! I couldn't just assure myself that he wouldn't do anything. I already saw him transform from man to beast in a span of a second and I didn't want that to happen again. I spent days holed up in the apartment, staring at myself in the mirror, willing the angry purple bruises Jacob's strong hands left on my pale neck to go away and for me to gain some composure before I could visit mom and dad.

My feet stopped, and I found myself standing in front of Rosalie's room, well, the room she stayed in 75% of the time since she's here that often. I knocked tentatively while listening in for any . . . um, _noises _that she and Emmett may be making in there.

It was silent before I heard padded footsteps heading for the door and Rosalie opened it, ushering me in when she saw my distraught face.

"_Did Rose believe you?" Edward asked me and effectively interrupting my story. I couldn't blame him for interrupting though, he'd been quiet through the whole "background of the story" ordeal and if I were listening, I would've wanted to know the answer from the moment I opened my mouth too. _

_I looked at him with a small smile, looking back to that day. "Yeah, she believed me, and my big bear of a brother did too. They tried to convince mom and dad but they wouldn't believe them—they were fully charmed by that bastard. Emmett suggested reporting him to authorities but not only will it be a vain effort, but I would look crazy and who knows what Jacob could do to me once he found out," I said with a shudder, exactly the same reaction I had when Emmett gave the suggestion before. _

"_So what happened next?" He asked. He reminded me of a little kid for a while there, asking his mom what happens next in a story._

_Speaking of which . . ._

_

* * *

Flashback! ~Jacob's Apartment: 1 month later~_

_Remember when I said I'd never felt so helpless before?_

_Yeah, it was the wrong moment to say that then. _

Now _seems like a perfect moment to say I've never felt so helpless._

_I've never felt so helpless. There, I said it!_

I sighed and started to cry when I saw the little positive sign on the pregnancy test. _This can't be! _All my plans for escape that Rosalie have been helping me with were thrown out the window. Now I had _two _people to think about!

_What have I done wrong to deserve this! _

I knew I missed my period, I just thought it was from the stress and the snappiness and bitchiness that Jacob's been doing. I _never _expected this! Not since our last sexcapade was 2 months ago and I was on the pill. Jacob came home frustrated then, and I learned that if I was going to make this work, I had to keep Jacob happy.

_I've never felt so dirty after sex, ever. _

I called my doctor to ask for a recommendation for a good Oby-Gyne to talk to, and maybe to vent out my frustration on too. _Thank god for that doctor-patient confidentiality thing!_

* * *

~_The Upper East Side: 1 Week later~ _

I was wearing this stupid coat and shades again, the same one I followed Jacob in, nix the shades. This time, I was also wearing that ridiculous fedora hat, the idea of wearing it made me laugh before, now, not so much. I looked up from under my hat to see the doctor's office. It was a private clinic—thank God, and she assured me that she would personally see to me immediately.

I opened the door and a woman in her late 30s saw to me. "Ms Swan?" she asked.

"Yeah, that's me," I replied with a gulp and a sigh as the doctor, Dr. Gerandy, led me to the examination room.

A few tests and some crying later, I discovered that I was already 2 months along. What. The. Fuck!? It happened during the last time I slept with Jacob? I asked her the question as to _how _the pill could fail me.

She asked me to tell her about anything I've done prior to that and I told her I had the flu and had to take some antibiotics. Turns out, if you take antibiotics, if kind of cancels the effect of the pill. _Damnit! _

I was still taking the antibiotics for safety measures that night I slept with Jacob. _Stupid, stupid, stupid! _But I would _never _dream of getting rid of my precious cargo. I was so innocent, it deserved none of the crap Jacob put me through or all that hatred I directed to that asshole. My baby was going to get all the love and care in the world—_without a father. _

I made up my mind then, I don't know if it was the hormones or the motherly instinct kicking in, but I knew one thing: I had to keep my child safe.

Oh, and I knew one _other _thing: Jacob would and should _never _know.

I thanked Dr. Gerandy and took a cab to the mansion. Rose and Emmett—they were the only ones I could tell this to.

* * *

We were sitting in the gazebo on the far side of the back garden, away from _all _the people. I didn't want any unwanted people to know this. Except my parents, as much as I _want _them to know, I can't tell them. Their first grandchild, and they won't even know. _It's for the best Bella, for you and the baby. _

"Rose, Em, I . . . have something to say," I told them nervously, fidgeting with my fingers.

"What is it lil' sis?" Emmett asked me. _May as well make this as fast and painless as possible . . . _

"I'm . . . pregnant," I mumbled before collapsing my head into my hands. I immediately felt their arms envelop me in an assuring hug.

"Oh Bella, it's going to be okay, don't cry, shh," Rose cooed in my ear, she would make a great mother one day.

"Yeah little sis," Emmett whispered for what I thought was the first time in my life that I heard him whisper. "We're here for you. I know you can't tell mom and dad, but are you telling Jacob?" he asked me.

I clenched my hands into fists. "No," I said through my set jaw and clenched teeth. I won't tell the asshole. I'm going to keep this from him as long as I can before I can escape. I _have _to find a way!" I pleaded with them.

"Don't worry Bella," Rose said reassuringly. "We still have a few weeks, give or take, before you start showing, it'll be okay. We'll find a way."

"Hey baby," Emmett said to my still flat stomach. "You're going to have the best mom ever, do you know that? She loves you very much already. And of course, you're going to have best uncle too," Rose whacked him on the head.

"Ouch Rosie! That hurt!" He said, rubbing his head.

Rosalie kneeled down to be level with my stomach. "Don't listen to him, you're going to be spending most of your time with your beautiful aunt, can't have your uncle's idiocy rub off on you," she said laughing, we joined in. In that small moment, I felt happy.

_Edward looked at me with what I couldn't deny was more love in his eyes. "You have a baby?" he whispered to me, he sounded really happy about that._

_I ducked my head down and felt a tear escape from my eyes and fall down, leaving a trail on my cheeks and stopping on my chin. Edward tilted my head up gently with his fingers and wiped away my tears with his thumb. "What's wrong?"_

"_I lost the baby," I said, before sobbing into his shoulder. He caressed my hair gently, rocking us slowly back and forth. _

"_Will you tell me about it?" Edward asked hesitantly, unsure if it would cause another outburst of tears from me._

_I sniffled lightly and looked at him, caressing his cheek lightly. "Of course, you have every right to know," I said._

"_No I don't" he argued._

"_Yes you do, so keep quiet and accept it," I said, back to my old self, as I started._

_

* * *

Flashback! ~Jacob's Apartment: 2 weeks after the doctor's visit~_

I was sitting on the couch, staring at the apartment idly. It wasn't home to me--not anymore. The cold walls were pressing down on me, tighter and tighter until I couldn't breathe anymore. I had headache, probably marking the beginning of the pains of pregnancy, but I knew that my baby was worth it—it was worth fighting for.

I hadn't told Jacob anything and being the oblivious ass he is; he didn't notice either. I was thankful for that.

I was thinking of a means of escape, stroking my flat stomach idly, stopping when I heard the doorknob jiggle. It was late, and if I guessed right, that meant Jacob was home, forgetting his keys, and flat out drunk.

"Let me in Bells!" he screamed, banging on the door loudly. It was hurting my ears. I walked slowly to the door.

"BELLA OPEN THE DAMN DOOR!" he yelled even louder as I scurried to the door and opened it slowly. He barged in, pushing the door back harshly, causing it to hit my front violently and the doorknob to hit my stomach painfully. _Oh no!_

"WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG?" he asked me impatiently, his breath reeking of alcohol. His eyes were darkening again. _Oh god no! Not my baby!_

I learned to interpret the actions his body made; his darkening eyes meant he was going to hit me. There needn't be a reason for these things. When he was drunk, there were no excuses needed--not in his book.

With my rotten luck, I wasn't able to move away on time before he slapped me hard and punched me in the stomach. I felt something ache inside me, followed by trickles of blood that I could see from my yoga pants. Jacob didn't see anything though; he was already passed out in the bedroom. I grabbed my coat and rushed outside, hailing a cab quickly and telling him to go to the hospital.

"GO!" I yelled at him as he sped up. I stumbled out of the cab after paying the driver with way more than what I knew was the fare. I ran into the emergency room and asked for a doctor.

Thankfully, Dr Gerandy was at the hospital too. She had clinic there sometimes and was here at the late hour delivering a baby. I only wished that one day; she would be able to deliver mine too—that is, of course, if nothing happened to it. I saw the blood on my pants reach somewhere on my knee and I panicked. I was taking deep breaths, surprisingly, the blood didn't bother me; I was too overcome with concern for the safety of the baby. I was crying now, I couldn't help it.

She went into the room quickly, peeling of her gloves and removing her mask when she saw me. She immediately went to my side before my world went black.

:::

I woke up in the hospital, dazed and confused, to see Rosalie standing over me with Emmett by her side looking at me sadly. I told Dr Gerandy before that I planned on telling them and gave her their contact numbers in case anything happened, can't risk her calling someone who doesn't know.

"What happened? What happened to the baby? Is it okay?" I asked them. Their sad faces told me that what I feared most happened.

_I lost my baby._

That moment was singularly the most painful moment of my life, I've never felt so overwhelmed with guilt, sadness and anger. Guilt because I could do nothing about it and I couldn't stop it either, I couldn't tell Jacob, if I did, none of this would've happened--yet, as far as I know; sadness because the light that entered my life vanished as quickly as it came and anger because that stupid, insensitive, selfish asshole was the one who caused it. I felt the tears prick my eyes as my small support group once more enveloped me in their arms. I cried it all out, my frustration, my anger, my guilt and my sadness.

_Jacob had hell to pay and I would spend the rest of my life if needed in making him do so.  
_

"_I'm so sorry Bella," Edward whispered to me. "It must've pained you so much, I only wish I was there to comfort you," he said to me lovingly. I snuggled closer to him._

"_It's okay Edward. I got over it. It was hard but I managed. I was shell for months, dark, cold and sad. Several times, suicide passed my mind but I knew it wouldn't fix anything. Death is easy, painless, and real life can just give you loads of pain, but I thought of my family, and how it would kill them to know I was gone—forever. So I thought of something else, it got my mind off of the miscarriage and helped me get over it," I told him._

"_What did you do?" he asked me._

"_The thing that led me to you," I said to him, as I launched into another part of the story._

_

* * *

Flashback! ~The Upper East Side: Approx. 1 year ago~_

"Hello? Vicky?" I said quietly into the phone.

"Hey Bella! How are you doing?" she told me happily.

"Terrible," I told her honestly. "Can I see you somewhere private tomorrow? Like at your place? I need your help," I whispered into my cell phone.

"Sure Bells, I'm happy to help. You know I'm here for you," she said soothingly.

_**The next day . . . **_

I knocked softly on Vicky's door, waiting for her to answer and looking around, checking to see if I knew anyone. I knew no one, thankfully.

Victoria's flame of red hair appeared when she answered the door in a t-shirt and yoga pants. "Hey Bella," she said, greeting me with a hug. "What do you need?" she asked me.

We sat down and I spent the next two hours telling Victoria _everything. _I told her about meeting Jacob, the marriage, the baby, his asshole-ness, his stupidity, how much he changed and how much I hated him for everything. I also told her my plan, and of course, she agreed to help me. Other than Rose, she was also my best friend and she had connections to help me. I don't know _exactly _what she did, but she knew her stuff when it came to these sort of things.

"Bella, are you sure about this?" she asked me.

"Yes I'm sure. It's the only thing I can think of. If I fake my death, everyone will think I'm dead, Jacob can't go through with his plan, he can't hurt anyone because there will be no one to threaten, he can't kill Charlie like he planned because if he dies, Emmett will be the one to inherit the company. He can't hurt anyone, he'll be stuck!" I said happily, well, as happily as I could in this situation.

"But what about you?" she asked me with concern clearly written on her face.

"I can take care of myself. I need to find people who can help me, those who will believe me. I want Jacob behind bars, he hurt me, lied to my family, killed my baby and threatened to hurt and kill me and my family. What choice do I have? It's what's best for them," I told her calmly.

"You're a great girl Bella, I hope you find someone who'll _really _treasure you and love you the way you deserve to be loved. I'll talk to my friend and pull a few strings for your new identity. When will the plan commence?" she asked me slyly.

"As soon as I get my new identity," I told her. "When do you think that will be?" I asked.

"In a week, so probably, we can do it next Wednesday?" she asked me.

"Perfect," I said, nodding my head, a determined look on my face.

"So how will we go about it? Don't tell me you actually plan on riding the car down the ridge yourself? You can really _die_ if you do that, then there will be no use pretending!" she told me, concerned.

"I'll jump out in time, I promise!" I said to her. She still looked unconvinced.

"You'll be there to help me. Tie a rope around my waist and pull me out too, ok?" I asked her to appease her concern.

"Fine," she mumbled begrudgingly. "I can't believe I'm helping you do this!"

"Please Vicky?" I asked her.

"Yeah, yeah, just remember. You can come here too if you need help," she said with a smile. I hugged her. "You're the best Vicky!"

She patted my back. "I know girl, I know," she said smugly.

"_You faked your death?" Edward asked me, shocked._

_I nodded my head slowly. "Yeah, and I completely understand if you hate me. I'm not lying though, the name you know me as now really _is _my real name. My fake identity was Marie Dwyer. I only used it when I had a job or something," I told him._

"_Bella, I don't hate you. I can see where you're coming from. I'm keeping an open mind and I'm not making any judgments. Now, can you tell me how you got to me? Not that I need to know, but I'm curious," he said with a laugh. _

"_Oh Edward, I don't deserve you," I told him, giving him a quick peck before starting my story from where it left off._

_

* * *

Flashback! ~Somewhere with cliffs that I don't even know about, all I care about is that there is a cliff, and a lot of trees to fall on~_

"Bella, are you sure?" Victoria asked me as I tightened the knot of the robe around my waist.

"Yeah Vicky. I'm sure. The car falls on the right side, so I can jump from my door. I'll be safe. Ok?" I told her, trying to reassure her, handing her the rope.

"But I'm nervous about this! What if it doesn't' work? I mean, they find out you're alive? There's no body to be found!" she said nervously.

"Bones burn right? And your friend has some . . . ashes that he said he'll scatter for effect, right?" I asked her.

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, Laurent found some from a hospital incinerator. I wish I never said he suggested it."

"Well I'm glad he did. They won't know; so chill, okay? If they do, I'll come out, I promise," told her.

"Fine, fine, go and kill yourself!" she said, closing the door.

I saluted her, looking calm even though my heart was hammering in my chest so loud that I could hear it my palms were sweaty too but I had to do this. "Will do!" And with that, I drove my car fast and into the rail, before it could fall, I jumped out just in time.

I rolled on the ground and stopped at Vicky's feet as she helped me up and gave me a tight hug, saying something about how it worked and everything. I looked down in time to see a big explosion. We ran off in the opposite direction and made it back to Vicky's house safely.

She drove me to New Jersey where she helped me get a new apartment which was quite decent. I can't thank her enough.

I grabbed my packed bag and slipped my papers into it. I gave Victoria a hug. "Thanks for everything Vicky, I owe you big time," I said with a smile.

"Be safe out there Bella," she replied as I opened the door of her car.

"I will," I whispered softly as I turned around and waved at her, watching her drive off.

I was on my own now.

"_What happened after that?" Edward asked me. I shrugged._

"_Not much, actually," I replied. _"This_," I said, gesturing to everything around us and at him. "Is the actual progress I had to getting my revenge and doing some action about my past," I whispered that last part. _

"_What did you do then?" he asked, looking at me with a confused expression on his face._

"_I worked, and worked, and worked. I was a waitress, bookstore keeper, a sales clerk at a department store and grocery store, a barista and all those other odd jobs in a span of a year. Soon, I made enough money to change my appearance. I got my hair cut up to here," I said, gesturing with my hand and pointing to the junction between my shoulder and neck. "But it grew back. Then, I bought a car and rented an apartment back at NYC. I had to keep tabs on everyone somehow. After I got my haircut, while I was still living in Jersey, I went to Rose and asked for her help. I also got Vicky and Emmett in on it too. We just haven't been able to do anything since I'm still in the process of getting a grip and taming myself so that I won't brutally murder the asshole when I see him again." I said, clenching my fists together when thoughts of Jacob invaded my memories. _

"_I stumbled upon your house when I saw Jacob across the street, I thought he recognized me since he kept looking at me, so I ducked my head and walked away slowly, then went to a full-blown sprint—in stilettos and that black dress since I came from a small get-together at Vicky's house. I ended up going to your mansion, sneaking past your guards, scaling your walls, breaking in and sleeping next to you since you looked so damn cute when you're asleep!" I said, immediately covering my mouth and blushing a new shade of red when I realized I said that last part out loud._

_Edward just nodded, and he laughed at my obvious word vomit._

"_So you think I'm cute huh?" he asked me, cockiness evident in his tone. _

_I slapped his arm. "Don't let it get to your head," I mumbled._

"_So that's my story!" I said, clapping my hands together in an attempt to steer anymore attention on that topic away. Edward just chuckled._

"_What?" I asked him. "Don't you think that's weird? That I'm weird? Don't you hate me?" I said as I got up from his lap and put my hands on my hips._

_He shook his head. "No, I don't hate you, nor do I think you're weird. In fact, I think I just fell in love with you more," he whispered as he got up and kissed me._

_I pulled away and looked into his eyes. "So are you going to help me?" I asked him._

_He pretended to think for a moment then he answered with his dazzling smile. "Of course" _

**

* * *

And there you are! Chapter 9! Whew! 5000 words! Pass or fail? I knew that stunt was kind of weird, but if you can see it in the movies, you can write it down on paper! Or into your computer.  
**

**It's the longest chapter in the story! I did it to make up for the shortness of the other one ;)**

**15 reviews for the next chapter please? **

**The next update will be next week already since I have to work on my other stories too.  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hi everyone! Before I say anything else, I'd like to thank all of you wonderful people who reviewed. I love all of you! *hugs*  
**

**Now, here is the next chapter of Through Your Window! It's not yet drama, more of the calm before the storm. It's also short since it's more of a filler. **

_

* * *

Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 10**

Lying

"_I don't know what you're talking about"_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

"_So that's my story!" I said, clapping my hands together in an attempt to steer anymore attention on that topic away. Edward just chuckled._

"_What?" I asked him. "Don't you think that's weird? That I'm weird? Don't you hate me?" I said as I got up from his lap and put my hands on my hips._

_He shook his head. "No, I don't hate you, nor do I think you're weird. In fact, I think I just fell in love with you more," he whispered as he got up and kissed me._

_I pulled away and looked into his eyes. "So are you going to help me?" I asked him._

_He pretended to think for a moment then he answered with his dazzling smile. "Of course" _

**

* * *

Angela's Point of View**

"So . . . what do we do now?" Jessica asked me as we both looked out the window, wide-eyed, to see Tanya's car coming in the driveway FIVE MINUTES after Edward and Bella just left.

_Talk about close calls. _

"Uh . . . you let me handle this. Just stand and smile and _don't_, I repeat, _DON'T _tell Tanya _anything_ about Bella," I told her sternly.

She shrugged. "Don't worry, if she's as big of a bitch as you tell me she is, then I'd rather have Edward have an affair with an angel instead of committing to a devil," she replied with a smirk.

I told her about the whole "Bella story" after they left. I didn't want to take any chances on their cover being blown, not to mention the fact that Bella is _much _nicer than Tanya and we were taken with her already.

Tanya stepped out of the car, flipping her strawberry blonde hair in a way to make us feel inferior. She went up the front steps, her heels making loud clicking noises with every step she took. Before we could answer the door, she barged right in.

"Edward!" she yelled in her sickly-sweet voice. I approached her slowly and carefully.

"Ms. Denali?" I said softly, she turned to me, glaring. She was probably expecting to see Edward show up and sweep her off her feet. _No way that's gonna happen. _

"Where's Edward?" she asked me.

"He just left ma'am," I replied.

"What? Why? It's the weekend, shouldn't he be here?" she asked, exasperated.

"He said he left for a little time alone but I don't know where he went," I replied timidly as she started giving me the evil eye.

"Alone time, huh? Shouldn't _I _be with him for some _alone time_?" She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at me.

"I-I don't know ma'am. He just left and said he'll be back for work on Monday." Stepping away, I threw a glance at Jessica and saw her roll her eyes at Tanya when she wasn't looking. Tanya just huffed and left the house, slamming the door behind her.

_How rude! After several months without a peep from her, _now _she decides to show up. _

"God, what a bitch," Jessica mumbled.

**

* * *

Edward's Point of View**

That night, I watched my angel sleep. It seemed to be the only time she looked completely at peace. Her mouth was slightly parted and her skin had a luminescent glow from the moonlight filtering in through the windows.

As I thought about her story, a surge of emotions flowed through me when I watched her cry as she imagined her pain. An angel shouldn't suffer like that, but yet she did. I felt so proud of her for being so strong—so put together. I knew that she wouldn't appreciate my violent thoughts on what that dog that did it to her, but I was glad that I was the one she turned to for help.

All that was left to do was get some reinforcements. I heard that Jasper worked for the FBI, maybe they could help out. I ticked off the wrongs Jacob did in my head: abuse, threats and attempted murder. I looked back to a few hours after her confession, when she told me that she found several plans for murder in Jacob's . . . diary . . . if you could call it that.

_What I couldn't quite fathom was __why Jacob wanted all that money so badly. What was he going to do with it? _I thought as I stared out the window to see the moon in the sky surrounded by a few stars.

I looked back at Bella. Her steady breathing and heartbeat had become my most favorite things to listen to. "Edward," she mumbled in her sleep as she turned over, her leg falling across my torso and her arm across my chest. I stroked her hair softly.

_I also like listening to her say my name in her it an ego booster.  
_

I know I sound like some lovesick fool but this _is _the first time I've ever actually _loved _someone who wasn't family, Tanya wasn't included there because as much as I _wanted _to love her, I just couldn't. It's awkward and weird since Bella and I both seem so different. She's brave and tenacious and I'm . . . boring. Sometimes I feel like a little kid trying to impress a beautiful woman, hence the reason why sometimes I talk to formally. Also, I was raised by my parents; both sets of them, to be a gentleman but sometimes when I see Bella, self-control just became a thing of the past and my will power thrown out the window.

My eyes started getting heavy as I let her quiet murmuring and breathing lull me to sleep.

* * *

My phone started vibrating on the nightstand, the vibrations causing the phone to hit the wood and start making loud tapping noises. I grabbed it before it could wake Bella up. "Hello?" I said into the phone groggily.

"Edward?" I heard Angela say softly.

"Hey, Angela, what is it?" I asked her.

"Well . . . uh, you see . . . Tanya came over here yesterday," she whispered into the phone.

That caused me to wake up. "What?" I asked her softly, cautious not to wake Bella up.

"She just came by unannounced _five minutes after you left," _she replied, stressing the last part to me.

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Talk about close calls, huh?" I shifted around carefully because I was starting to lose circulation on my left leg due to Bella's own leg draped over it.

"Yeah, I thought the same thing too." She replied.

"What did you tell her?"

"I told her you wanted some _alone time _but I didn't tell her where. I _did _tell her that you'd be back on Monday," she replied, rushing out the last part.

"Why?" I asked her.

"You know how Tanya is, Edward. She won't stop until she has something else to work with. She's annoying like that," she said with a laugh.

"Annoying is the understatement of the year," I told her with a chuckle. The vibrations in my chest must've caused Bella to stir because before I knew it, I could feel someone running their hands through my hair and her fingers trailing down to my pajama pants.

"Uh . . . Angela, I . . . have to go," I said, gulping as Bella started kissing my neck.

She laughed softly on the end of the line. "I'm taking Bella is awake?"

I gulped. "Yeah . . ."

"Say no more, bye!" And with that, the line went dead. I put my phone back on the nightstand.

I felt Bella smile against my neck. "Angela called?" she asked me.

"Yup, how'd you know?"

She rolled her eyes. "Please, I woke up when your phone started to vibrate, I just pretended to be asleep," she said smugly.

"Well you're good at it," I replied before leaning in to kiss her. She put up her hand and covered my mouth and covering hers with her free one.

"Morning breath," she said, the sound muffled by her hand.

I shook my head. "Doesn't matter," I said as I made a move to remove her hand.

"I have to take a shower and brush my teeth!" she suddenly announced, hopping up from the bed and running to the bathroom.

"Hey! Don't start something you can't finish!" I yelled from the bed.

I heard her melodious laugh. "I want to! Besides, you're cute when you're all hot and bothered," she replied before I heard the water running.

"Care to join me?" she asked. I didn't waste my time answering; I scrambled up from the bed like a hormonal teenager and ran to the bathroom.

* * *

One long shower and some breakfast later, Bella and I were walking around the small private beach behind the pool, our fingers were intertwined while we stared at the water sparkling up to the horizon.

"Bella, I want you to meet my sister next week," I told her. She looked at me.

"Are you sure?" she asked me, a look of uncertainty crossing her face quickly.

"Of course I am. I love you and I want you to meet my family, I just don't want to subject you to the full inquisition that includes my aunt and uncle, well, technically they're my parents," he looked at me seriously before he continued. "But I want to break things off with Tanya first before I can formally introduce you."

"Edward, you do know that through all of this, I have to stay under the radar, right?" she asked me.

"Of course, it will be completely quiet. I'll just tell Tanya that I can't keep living this way, which is the truth. I can't keep living with a shadow beside me. I want someone _real _and that someone . . . is you."

"You say the corniest, cheesiest things and yet . . . I find them completely heartwarming. There must be something wrong me," she mumbled.

I pulled her to my chest. "There's nothing wrong with you, love. You just love me," I said smugly.

She punched my arm. "Yeah, I do. Just don't think that you can get away with anything using that excuse from now on," she said.

"I won't," I replied, rubbing my arm. She had a mean right hook. Ouch.

**

* * *

Alice's Point of View**

I was reading about the newest fashion trends on Vogue when my phone started ringing. I looked at the caller ID and it read _Edward. Wow, Edward never called me on a whim before. _I can tell, usually he only calls when he absolutely has to or when we need to do something. And as far as I knew, we didn't have to do anything and he wasn't at work.

"Hello Edward," I chirped happily into the receiver.

"Hey there Alice," he said in reply. "Are you free on Tuesday? I want to meet with you," He told me, sounding unusually . . . happy? _Well that's something new . . ._

"Why?" I asked him suspiciously, drawing out the word. My dear brother rarely has time to talk to me, much more _meet _with me. He always has his head buried in work and Tanya pulling him around by the ear.

"I want you to meet someone," he whispered quietly into the phone. That statement caught my attention and I was attentively listening now.

"_You _met _someone?" _I asked him in disbelief?

"Yes," he replied, as quietly as before but with a tone of happiness creeping into his voice.

I squealed loudly, jumping on my bed, glad that I was in the privacy of my room. "EDWARD! WHEN DID YOU MEET HER? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME SOONER? And what are you going to do about Tanya the rich bitch?" I asked him, saying the last part in a soft mumble.

"Calm down Alice!" he told me, chuckling. _Wow, he _laughs _so much more now! _"I met her a few days ago and that's why I could only tell you now because it just recently became official. As for Tanya, I'm planning on breaking things up on Monday," he said. I could imagine him pinching the bridge of his nose then running his hand through his already unruly hair as he thought about her reaction.

_It's good to know I'm not the only one who loathes that woman. _

"So, Alice, can you meet with me at your place on Tuesday?" he asked me hopefully.

I laughed. "Of course I can! You know I wouldn't miss meeting your girlfriend for anything, even _shopping!" _I declared proudly as I emphasized the word 'shopping'.

"Glad to hear that, Alice. I'll see you there on Tuesday for lunch! Bye!" he said, unnaturally giddy as he hung up.

_I felt so happy for him. _

**

* * *

And there you go! Wow it's short. **

**I'll put up the next chapter next Wednesday! So please review! **


	12. Chapter 12

**And here we go! Another chapter, right on time as promised ;)**

**I also decided to update my other stories after finishing this one but you may find a random update or two sometimes . . .**

**By the way, thank you for all your spectacular reviews that make the sun shine brighter :) **

**

* * *

**_Through Your Window_

By writingunderatree

**Chapter 11**

Thunder

_The purest ore is produced from the hottest furnace, and the brightest thunderbolt is elicited from the darkest storm –Charles Colton_

_

* * *

Previously . . .  
_

_It's good to know I'm not the only one who loathes that woman. _

"_So, Alice, can you meet with me at your place on Tuesday?" he asked me hopefully._

_I laughed. "Of course I can! You know I wouldn't miss your girlfriend for anything, even shopping!" I declared proudly as I emphasized the word 'shopping'. _

"_Glad to hear that, Alice. I'll see you there on Tuesday for lunch! Bye!" he said, unnaturally giddy as he hung up. _

_I felt so happy for him._

**

* * *

Edward's Point of View**

Monday Afternoon.

I was going to break up with Tanya because I loved Bella. Being in love with her was something I was so sure of that it hurt--so, so much. I was prepared for whatever bitch fit Tanya will throw because I know that it won't make me sway. I talked to Eleazar this morning and he assured me that I am no longer obligated, mentioning the fact that he thought we were _already _through since she _has been seeing someone else. _

So she's been seeing someone else on the side; maybe that explains the four month period when I heard nothing from her because she was _supposedly _vacationing in Italy.

Frankly, I don't care who it is, whoever it is just provided me with a load of ammo before I face the war.

My eyes met with the view of the café Tanya wanted to meet me in and I saw her purple Camaro parked in front of it. I sighed. _That means she's here. _I was relying on her to be late as usual. I needed those extra ten minutes to get a hold of myself but I guess I'll have to suck it up this time.

I entered the café and saw Tanya sitting down on a corner table. Once she saw me, her face instantly brightened up and she ran over and hugged me.

"Oh Eddie I missed you _like crazy_!" she said as she hugged me even tighter.

"Um . . ." I said; trying to think of something to say that wasn't on the lines of: 'sure you did, because going to "Italy" for the past four months just screams "I MISS YOU."'

"It's _Edward, _Tanya, not Eddie," I told her. I guess that was the best thing to say without seeming distant or happy without giving away m current annoyance.

"Ok, _Edward_," she replied, emphasizing her use of my name. She pulled me towards the table and I rolled my eyes when she wasn't looking.

We sat down across each other and Tanya ordered coffee. Once the waiter left the table, she immediately started talking.

"So, where'd you run off to over the weekend? I came over and Angela said you just got in your car and left," she asked, looking at me suspiciously. Frankly, I couldn't understand how it could possibly be fair for _her _to question my _one weekend_ of absence while I, on the other hand, went through _4 months_ with no contact from her.

I shrugged. "It's nothing; I just needed to be alone to think about something. Speaking of which, I talked to your father," I said, trying to see if that opening would draw any reactions from her.

My suspicions were confirmed when I saw her eyes momentarily widen. I've never done this before, and I don't think I ever will again—so I must not screw it up.

"Tanya, why didn't you tell me you were having an affair?" I asked her softly.

Her eyebrows scrunched up in confusion—she was playing dumb. "What are you talking about sweetie? What affair?" she asked me innocently.

"The one you've been having for the past four months when you were supposedly vacationing in Italy," I told her.

"I—I don't know what you're talking about!" she told me defiantly. We paused as the waiter came back to the table, putting Tanya's coffee down in front of her.

We started speaking again when the waiter was out of earshot. "Tanya, your dad already told me. It seems like you told him that you weren't seeing him anymore. Before you start yelling or doing whatever it is you normally do, I want to say something," I told her. She stayed quiet and looked at me.

"When I left for some alone time last week, I got to thinking about _us _I realized that it's not working," I said with a sigh. _There, I said it. _

"What are you talking about? We work great!" she told me. She sounded as if she was on the verge of mild hysteria.

"No, we don't," I told her bluntly. "If we did, you wouldn't be gone all the time, I would actually learn to tolerate you sometimes and you wouldn't be having an affair with someone," I said. I didn't mention Bella, knowing that it would just add fuel to the fire. It may sound quite hypocritical, not telling her about _my _own affair, but if I respected the anonymity of the man she was sleeping with, then she should respect mine.

"Edward!" she said, a little too loudly, but luckily, we were in a secluded spot in the café so no one noticed.

"That's it Tanya. I can't do this anymore, I can't live like this! I've finally come to terms with myself and I found peace and acceptance. I have gained the approval of my parents and of your own, so please respect that. You're a great girl and lucky to have found someone else who will have you. I've said my piece," I told her as I got up and left.

When I exited the café, I felt considerably lighter, like the burden was lifted off my shoulders by some assisting crane. I felt light, lighter than when I told Bella I loved her, lighter than when I came to terms with myself and lighter than when I made up my mind to break up with Tanya because this time, I did it. _My self-induced torment was over—I've found closure. _

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

"Hello?" Rosalie said over the phone, confusion evident in her voice. I'm sure she didn't recognize the number on her phone since I was using Edward's private line.

"Rosalie? It's me, Bella!" I told her over the phone.

"Bella, I missed you!" she said happily. "Where are you? Why'd you call?"

"Rosalie, I found _him. _I finally found the one who can help me!" I told her happily, gazing up at the ceiling dreamily as I reveled in the softness of Edward's bed.

I heard something fall to the floor before I heard her loud: "WHAT? REALLY? Tell me _everything!_" she demanded.

"I don't have time to do it now. Are you at our place? Is it safe to go there?" I asked her.

"Yeah, Emmett's here too. Renee and Charlie are supposed to come back tomorrow but I think you can sneak in," she said in a distracted voice, probably assessing the situation at hand.

"I'll be there in an hour, wait for me at the usual spot." I told her as I grabbed my bag.

"Bye Bella!"

"Bye Rose!" I said before hanging up.

The cab drive to my house was uneventful. I asked the driver to stop a street before the back gate.

As usual, I tried to walk casually but tried to stay inconspicuous, being careful of those houses with nosey neighbors or family friends who might recognize me. Rose was already waiting for me at the back gate, when she saw me and waved me over. She gave me a quick hug and opened the gate, making sure it didn't creak.

We crept in quietly, using the trees to obscure any view of us as we entered the back door of the house. For once, I was thankful for my mom's eccentricity. I never knew that her idea of putting trees near the back door could be such sheer genius! It's the one time odd things like these actually worked to _my _advantage.

We entered the kitchen before Rose stopped abruptly and shoved me into the . . . pantry. I could hear her voice and it sounded like she was talking to our cook, Evelyn.

"Oh! There's no need Evelyn! _I'll _get that bag of flour for you," I heard her say as the pantry door opened. I slipped into the shadows before the lights turned on and I saw Rosalie looking for the flour.

"God, that was close one," she told me, sighing.

"Yeah it was, aren't you glad we actually have a push-door pantry?" I replied teasingly.

She rolled her eyes. "Am I ever," she said as she found the bag of flour and lifted it. "I'll come back for you, I'll just clear out." She left, letting a small patch of light enter the pantry as she opened the door and then I found myself immersed in darkness again once she closed it. I heard Rose's voice, most likely telling the maids to take a lunch break, seeing as it was near lunch time. The clicking of her heels could be heard, getting louder and louder as she reached the pantry door. I crept into the shadows again in case it wasn't her. Knowing my rotten luck, _that _was actually a possibility.

The door creaked and I saw her peek inside. "Bella?" she said.

I stepped out. "I'm here, is it safe?" I asked her.

She held out her hand to me. "Yeah, it's clear; I told the staff to have lunch. Let's go." We left the pantry and made a beeline for the stairs, running quickly to her bedroom and shutting the door behind us. I locked it.

"BELLA!" I heard a booming voice yell before I was swept off the ground and into the arms of my big brother.

"Can't—breathe! Need—a—air!" I gasped out as I tried to get out of Emmett's grasp. He let go of me immediately and set me down on the ground.

"Oops, sorry there sis. I just missed you," he told me sheepishly.

"Awww, don't be sorry! I missed you too Big Bear!" I said as I gave him a hug.

"Ok! Now that the reunion's over, and thank God it is before you two start making me gag if you start crying," Rosalie said as she rolled her eyes. "Bella should share some details—now!" she demanded as she and Emmett sat down on the bed, looking at me eagerly.

I sighed, knowing that there was no escape from the inquisition that I put upon myself. I sat down on the black bean bag that looked strangely out of place in Rosalie's mint green and white bedroom.

"I met this guy . . ." I started, trailing off. Rose's eyes widened at the mention of a guy and Emmett's eyes narrowed slightly, memories of Jacob probably running through his head.

I told them all about Edward and how he said he could help me. I didn't know yet for sure, but I felt confident that _this _was the moment I've been waiting for. It was the conclusion to my pain, my hard work and all my hiding. Emmett relaxed when I told them of how well Edward treated me and how I saw him treat others and how they gave me the seal of approval. Rosalie's eyes shined with happiness, glad that I was finally able to "snag myself a man" as she so aptly put it.

After I concluded my story, I stood up and told them that I'd be meeting Edward's sister tomorrow.

"I'm nervous," I confessed as I paced around the room. Rose stood up and gave me a hug.

"It's okay Bella. I'll help you pick out an outfit from _my _own wardrobe," she said happily. Emmett grunted. "Ewww, girl stuff!" he said. "I'm getting out of here!" he said with a mock salute as he exited the room. We laughed at him—as usual.

* * *

Tuesday morning.

I grew up in a family that was usually the center of most social gatherings, so of course I was used to meeting people _all the time. _

The part that irked me the most was the preliminary nervousness that settled on the pit of my stomach. Sure, I was used to meeting them, but the nervousness never subsided until I was sure they didn't seem piqued by me.

_Let's just say that the nervousness was multiplied by ten this time. _

Edward seemed to notice my inner predicament and squeezed my hand gently. We were standing outside the door of his sister, Alice's, condo unit. The condominium was somewhere near the end of the Upper East Side, but far away from where Rose and I normally hung-out. No one on this part seemed to recognize me, but for safety measures, I wore a scarf over my head and sunglasses. I probably looked like I just had plastic surgery, but I didn't care. It was natural in these places anyway.

"There's nothing to be nervous of, love," he whispered in my ear. I could tell he was trying to suppress a chuckle.

"Oh, go ahead and laugh," I said, acid lacing my tone as I rolled my eyes at him before smacking his arm--hard. "Of course there's something to worry about!" I said through my gritted teeth, keeping my smile intact as I heard someone say "coming!"

"Calm down," he murmured, as footsteps drew closer to the door. I didn't know if he was talking to me or to his sister, whom he said was quite the energetic one. I moved to stand behind him.

"Ah, hello there Alice," I heard him say as he hugged his sister. She was _tiny! _Her height seemed to be about 4'10 with inky black hair in a pixie cut. Of course, she was as gorgeous as Edward said she was and dressed tastefully from head to toe.

"Hello Bella!" she said; her voice like tinkling bells as she walked over to me and pecked my cheek.

"Hi Alice," I said nervously.

**

* * *

And that ends chapter 11! What do you all think? Pass or fail? It's also earlier from what I promised! **

_**Reviews are like puppies, they're nice and they make you laugh. They also make you happy!**_

**Please review! Please? With cherries? And chocolate syrup? And . . . nuts? I don't like nuts but if you like them, then I'll ask with nuts too! Hmm . . . what about marshmallows? Do you like marshmallows? I have that too! :))  
**


	13. Chapter 13

**Well look at that! Another chapter! *gasp***

**Yeah, here's another chapter of this story! Yay! *applause* Also, I would like to thank all of the wonderful people who reviewed, you all deserve cyber hugs! I already reached over a hundred! **

**Sorry if it's a little late by the way, I had to take care of my mom, she got sick. So sad. **

**Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Ok, I'm done, let's get on with it! **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 12

Sprinkles of Pixie Dust

_All you need is faith, trust, and a little pixie dust – Peter Pan_

_

* * *

Previously . . ._

"_Calm down," he murmured, as footsteps drew closer to the door. I moved to stand behind him._

"_Ah, hello there, Alice," I heard him say as he hugged his sister. She was tiny! Her height seemed to be about 4'10 with inky black hair in a pixie cut. _

"_Hello Bella!" she said; her voice like tinkling bells as she walked over to me and pecked my cheek._

"_Hi Alice," I said nervously. _

**

* * *

Alice's Point of View**

When Edward called and told me he met someone, I was actually quite dubious. _My _brother actually met someone he _liked, _someone he liked enough to introduce to his wonderful, caring and loving sister!

Yep, that's me!

I was arranging the spikes on my hair one by one; making sure it looked naturally messy yet still cute. Spending hours on hair may contradict _natural _but I like it that way!

My powder pink sweater was falling off the bed so I hopped over and picked it up. While I was checking my outfit for one last time, straightening up my shirt and dusting my pants lightly, the doorbell rang.

_Oh, Edward, always the punctual one. _I thought as I rolled my eyes playfully at the thought. He never told me his mystery girl's name, or how she looked like but I had this _feeling _that we'd be great friends! I didn't really have many girlfriends and I was in dire need of a girl to talk to.

"Coming!" I yelled as I made a beeline for the door. I opened it and came face to face with my dear brother, Edward, and a brunette standing behind him. Even with a partial view of her face, I could already tell that she was beautiful. Edward hugged me and I immediately remembered how much I missed spending time with my brother. Tanya was always usually dragging him around and he was lonely and brooding, why it was, I would never know. It was so unusual to see him so happy and I knew I had to thank his mystery girl for that.

"Ah, hello there, Alice," he said while hugging me.

His girlfriend moved over a little and I could see her fully over Edward's shoulder. She was really pale, as pale as Edward and I were; she also had dark, mahogany brown hair that contrasted her skin and the most beautiful brown eyes. She was gorgeous! No wonder Edward fell for her. She has more beauty and substance than Tanya can ever _dream _to have. I would know, because I could feel it and I also have this feeling I've seen her _somewhere _before.

She turned shyly toward Edward and I remembered where I saw her before! She was at that Christmas charity gala two years ago. Her name was Isabella Swan, but I heard her say she wanted to be called Bella. I wanted to talk to her then, since she looked so sad but there was this overbearing guy next to her that didn't seem to want her to talk to anyone, and based on her uncomfortable look back then—I was right. I'm sure it's her, I knew those eyes.

"Hello Bella!" I told her, reaching over to peck her cheek.

"Hi Alice," she said nervously. Then she shook her head and threw a confused look to Edward, probably wondering if he told me her name. He just shrugged at her and Edward looked at me, probably curious as well.

I thought that I better explain myself. "You're Bella Sw-" I couldn't finish because they both shushed me and Edward pushed me inside the apartment and shut the door behind him.

I rubbed my arm and glared at Edward. "Ouch, Edward, pushy much?" I asked him.

We sat down on the couch and he looked at me repentantly as he held Bella's hand. "I'm sorry Alice but we couldn't risk you saying Bella's _real _name out loud. Speaking of which, how'd you know her real name?" he asked me.

"I remember a Bella Swan that attended a Christmas charity gala two years ago. She looked like your girlfriend and I was immediately sure that she's Bella!" I said to them, looking at Bella. She plopped her face down on Edward's shoulder and groaned.

"Did-did I say something wrong?" I asked, wondering if she didn't like me.

She looked up from his shoulder and gave me a surprised look. "Oh, no! You didn't say anything wrong. I just didn't think you'd know or remember or, oh my . . ." she said, trailing off, a distraught look on her face. I was confused.

"I think you should let us explain everything, Alice," Edward said calmly.

I crossed my arms, looking at him suspiciously. "Please do," I replied.

"But before we start," he said, I think you should be formally introduced. "Bella, this is Alice Cullen, my little pixie of a sister and Alice, you already know Bella," he said, looking fondly at her. _They were SO cute together! I couldn't have dreamed up a better girl for Edward!_

He looked at Bella and she nodded slightly then he proceeded to telling me _everything _about Bella. I heard about her arranged marriage, her abusive fiancé, the pregnancy, faking her death, her escape and of course, the ever so wonderful, but unusually romantic story of how they met.

Edward also asked if I would like to help her.

_She's got guts! Sure, I told Jasper I was the girl of his dreams and fantasies when I first met him but I would never think of climbing up into his house and sleeping next to him! It's a shame she had to go through all of those horrible things and I know that we're already going to be great friends._

"I'll help you," I told her happily. She smiled. "You know, I have this feeling we're going to be such great friends!" I squealed as I went over to her and gave her a hug. I snuck a look at Edward and he looked happy that were getting along.

_Happy, that's how he felt, and that's how I felt. Somehow, I finally felt at peace for my brother. And I know what that calls for . . ._

"Bella, we should go shopping!" I told her excitedly.

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

I groaned. Shopping was my worst enemy. I didn't really hate it, per se, I just disliked it the way some girls dislike sports.

It was bad enough that Rose had to take me with her when she found the "most adorable pair of shoes that she can't live without and would _definitely _knock Emmett's socks off".

I cringed. _Ewww, mental image! _

Alice noticed my discomfort and looked at me, her wide eyes curious. "You don't want to go shopping?" she asked me in a small voice, her face looking like a child that had their candy taken away.

"No, no! I just don't really _like _shopping but I'll go with you!" I said, trying to add as much enthusiasm as possible.

She squealed. It was probably high enough to burst my eardrums and attract dogs.

"Oh my God! It's going to be so much fun! I've never gone shopping with anyone before, except maybe for my boyfriend, Jasper, but he doesn't count!" she said quickly. Does she _ever _run out of breath?

"What about Edward?" I asked her.

He raised both hands up in surrender as Alice looked at him—daring him to say no. "I'll just . . .um, go with you. I'll . . . drive you there! But Alice, remember. . ." he trailed off, silently reminding her about keeping us under the radar.

"Don't worry, Edward! I've got it covered!" she said with snap. "You can wear a disguise," she told me seriously.

I couldn't help it—I laughed.

She crossed her arms and pouted. "Do you want to be noticed or not?" she asked me.

"Okay, okay, I'll wear one, but promise me one thing," I told her sternly.

She looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"No wigs," I said with a giggle.

"That won't be a problem, follow me!" she said, pulling my arm as she dragged me with her to her room.

* * *

Alice's room was . . . pink and purple.

And white, with lacy frills and flowers everywhere.

_That was putting it lightly, _I thought with a mental eye roll. It was like a bomb filled with nothing but girly stuff exploded in here; the only things that weren't pink and purple were her mahogany bed frame, the dresser and her closet doors, but even those were subjected to be girly-fied, there were lacy strings with flowers on them wrapped around her bed posts and lining her dresser mirror. The doors of her closet had some around the edges too. It was like a princess' room—only with a touch of pixie.

"Sit here," she told me seriously as she barged into her closet. I heard the rustling sounds of plastic and that tissue paper they wrap your clothes in before she stepped out of the closet, a triumphant look on her face as she held up a pair of pants, a white shirt and a lavender sweater.

"I got it!" she told me happily as she thrust the clothes at my chest. "That is your disguise," she said, her hands on her hips as she analyzed what to do with me next.

I looked down at the clothes which were obviously Alice's size. "Um, Alice, I don't think these will fit me," I told her. "The pants will look like capris and the sweater will be a shrug."

"That's my point. Now, stop asking questions and put them on," she commanded as she pushed me into the bathroom. For a pixie-sized girl, she was _strong! _"I'll do the next part of your disguise when you're done changing," she said from the other side of the door.

After putting on her clothes, I looked at my appearance in the mirror. The pants were a little snug around the hips but I'll live. The shirt was okay and the sweater was, in fact, a shrug when I wore it. All in all, I didn't look half bad. I kept my flats on since I knew that this shopping trip would involve a _lot _of walking. I learned from experience after all.

I went out of the bathroom and was immediately dragged by Alice to the dresser. She applied some eyeliner on me and little bit of clear lip gloss. She braided my hair but since it was layered, she left the short parts to dangle freely and frame my face.

"And to finish off the look . . ." she said, trailing off while she got something from one of the drawers.

"A pair of glasses!" she announced, slipping them onto my face.

"Don't worry, the lenses are plastic so you'll be fine," she assured me. "Ta-dah!" she said happily, gesturing to my reflection in the mirror.

Looking at the result, I realized that I _did _look different. I didn't even recognize myself unless I looked _really _closely, and I doubt that complete strangers would just walk over to me and invade my personal space.

"I have to hand it to you Alice, you _know _style," I told her with a smile.

She looked at me smugly. "Don't I know it!"

* * *

"This is our stop Edward!" Alice chirped happily from the backseat. I just groaned as I stared up at Barney's; I looked at Alice and saw her eyes light up with excitement, like a child waiting for her presents on Christmas day.

She was already out of the car in a flash and opening my door. "C'mon Bella!" she said eagerly. Edward chuckled beside me. I threw him a glare and he just shrugged.

"Yeah, c'mon, Bella!" he said playfully. I smacked him upside the head.

"Ouch!" he said, rubbing his head tenderly. "What was that for?"

I snickered. "Nothing, just sharing my enthusiasm," I said as I eased myself out of the car, and, of course, I pulled a Bella and hit my head on the door.

"Ouch," I mumbled as they laughed.

"Oh ha-ha," I said sarcastically, grabbing Alice by the hand. "Enough laughter at my expense, see you later Edward!" I said before he threw me a crooked smile and left.

I sighed. _Here we go, I hope no one recognizes me. _

_

* * *

_

**And that's chapter 12! It was a light chapter full of Alice and Bella interaction and of course . . . make-overs! **

**Review please! Please? I'm only asking for twenty, not 50, not a hundred, just twenty.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Hello again! Here's another chapter of the story! *cue applause* Thank you! Thank you! *people start pelting me with tomatoes* "Get out of there!" *raises hands up in surrender* Alright! Alright! Here you go! Just stop *hit* throwing *splat* tomatoes *throw* at me *plonk* dammit! *dramatic walk out*  
**

**Thank you all my wonderful reviewers who took time to review! I love you all and you all deserved hugs and cookies. Yes, cookies, not kisses, got a problem with that? I like cookies :)  
**

**This is another filler chapter and a bit of plot building going on there, and I thought you'd all love to see the shopping trip Alice takes Bella on.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended.(wow, that sounds so professional! Okay, moving on . . . )  
**

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 13

Marathon Shopping Trips R Us

"_The quickest way to get to know a woman is to go shopping with her" _

_

* * *

Previously . . ._

_She was already out of the car in a flash and opening my door. "C'mon Bella!" she said eagerly. Edward chuckled beside me. I threw him a glare and he just shrugged._

_"Yeah, c'mon, Bella!" he said playfully. I smacked him upside the head._

_"Ouch!" he said, rubbing his head tenderly. "What was that for?"_

_I snickered. "Nothing, just sharing my enthusiasm," I said as I eased myself out of the car, and, of course, I pulled a Bella and hit my head on the door._

_"Ouch," I mumbled as they laughed._

_"Oh ha-ha," I said sarcastically, grabbing Alice by the hand. "Enough laughter at my expense, see you later Edward!" I said before he threw me a crooked smile and left._

_I sighed. __Here we go; I hope no one recognizes me. _

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

Alice and I entered Barney's double doors. The doors screamed doom for me and my mind was telling me to run away . . . far, far, away but my conscience said otherwise. Alice was, after all, Edward's sister and she seemed like a great person--pushy, but great.

She looked around eagerly, her eyes twinkling as she admired rack after rack of clothing and the shelves full of accessories. The bright lights seemed to just _illuminate _her, so it looked like the rays of heaven were shining down on this little pixie. She looked so . . . at home that is was actually sort of funny.

Her eyes widened like saucers when they came upon a sign that might as well have been magic words, or, in my case, a curse: RED TAG SALE.

She squealed, grabbed my hand and _dragged _me to the spot of the sale. She was moving so fast that I had a hard time keeping up that I bumped into a few racks here and there and that I almost tripped—three times.

"Ms. Cullen! A pleasure it is to see you again!" a woman said to her. She looked like she was in her mid-thirties with light brown hair.

Alice let go of my hand and gave the woman a hug. "Darla! It's nice to see you too! I'd like you to meet my _best friend . . ."_ she replied, trailing off, asking me for help. She was so into the whole "low profile" thing that she let me handle the identity situation at hand.

"Marie," I cut in, shaking her hand with a smile. "Marie Dwyer," I finished.

"She's Edward's girlfriend," Alice stage-whispered to Darla,

Darla appraised me, eyeing me up and down. Then she smiled. "Well it's about time that brother of yours got a girlfriend, and it's a good thing he found a decent one! You're beautiful, honey," she said to me.

I blushed. "Thank you," I replied quietly.

"I just met her today, but I knew we were going to be _great_ friends!" Alice piped in. "You know what they say, the best way to get to know a woman is by taking her shopping!" she declared happily. Darla laughed.

"You got that right! Well then, I'll just leave you two here to do your shopping. Just give me a holler when you need assistance!" she told us, walking off.

Alice looked at me like a drill sergeant preparing his men."Put your arms out in front of you," she commanded. _What? _

"What?" I asked her, confusion painting my features.

She sighed and put her hands on her hips. "Just do it."

"Okay," I said, unsure, holding out my arms.

She dove into the first rack and grabbed shirt after shirt and threw them into my open arms. She took two out, held them up like she was making a decision, shrugged, then put both of them into my arms. After ten minutes, I couldn't even see Alice anymore.

"Ok, I think that's enough!" she told me, pulling me along by the elbow to what I guessed was the fitting room.

"There," she said, shoving me into the fitting room. "Try those on and I'll wait here," she told me seriously, before shutting the door and leaving me with a wide assortment of clothing that ranged from tank tops to coats and sweaters.

Sighing at the enormous pile, I picked up a dress that looked harmless enough and started changing—just to try it on, and to appease Alice. The dress had a checkered pattern, was sleeveless and had a scarf at the neck with V-neckline. It fell right at my knees and felt _really _soft. I looked at my reflection in the mirror and I had to hand it to Alice, it was a very nice dress. I gave a little twirl and the price tag at the back caught my eye. They almost bulged out when I saw the digits on the little piece of paper. Upon closer inspection, I saw that it was a Martin Grant dress. I rolled my eyes—designer—of course. It just screamed Alice _and _it cost almost two thousand dollars.

That's not exactly within my price range right now. I was saving and just because I was with Edward, didn't mean that I could just splurge. I don't care how much of a millionaire he is—I am not a gold-digger. I looked at the other outfits and noticed that they were designer brands as well. _Wasn't this a bit too much and a bit too overboard?_

**Of course not! It IS too much and it IS too overboard. **

"Um . . . Alice?" I said, trying to call her attention.

"Yeah?" she replied. "Are you done? How do they look? Can I see? Wow, you change fast!" she said eagerly, all in one breath.

"Uh, yeah, I'm wearing a dress that costs almost two thousand dollars!" I said, almost screaming the price out.

"Let me in," Alice said.

I opened the door and she fit her tiny frame in. "I don't see what the problem is," she said calmly. "You look great!"

"Alice," I argued, exasperated. "This is not within my price range for the moment. You know I can't afford something like this!"

"You can't," she said. "But _I _can!" she said in a sing-song voice, wagging her finger at me.

"I'm not letting you pay for this," I told her seriously, gesturing to the dress.

"Of course you won't! You'll try on the rest of these clothes and I'll pay for those too!" she said happily. _Clever little pixie._ I was about to argue but she put a finger up to my lips. "No arguments." She walked out of the door and closed it behind her.

Resigned, I went back to trying on all the clothes.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, I had my choices narrowed down to three things, one top, one bottom and a coat. They were all within my price range so it wouldn't make me cringe in guilt if Alice forces me to let her buy them. I looked at the pile_ Alice_ said I should buy, which composed of five shirts, three dresses, three pairs of pants, two skirts and two coats—all designer.

I picked up the clothes I chose and headed out of the stuffy changing room. Alice immediately stood up and greeted me at the door, her face scrunching in confusion at the sight of _only _three articles of clothing in my hands.

"Bella, where are the other clothes?" she asked me.

"I'm not letting you buy them, Alice," I said.

She pouted and gave me _puppy dog eyes. _Did I ever mention how I had this weakness for cute things? And right now, Alice looked so cute. "Please?" she said sadly, like a little kid who wanted a cookie.

I huffed. I had to be strong. "No," I told her sternly.

"Pretty please? PleasePleasePleasePleasePleasePleasePleasePlease?" she said, circling me while hopping.

"Fine!" I was very annoyed right now. How is Edward related to someone like her? Why is she my best friend? I'm going to need a reminder. "Only because you're really annoying."

She squealed—again, and started clapping, swinging her arms around me and hugging me _tight. _"Thank you, Bella! You'll look great! I promise!" she said, rushing to the fitting room where she grabbed _all _the clothes and getting those in my hands before making a beeline for the cashier.

_Ok, I have a reminder now. _Alice can be great—when she wants to be or really annoying.

* * *

"Now that we're done shopping for clothes, we shall now buy shoes and accessories!" Alice said happily. _Why is it that we always need shoes and accessories for every outfit?_

"Alice, is that _really necessary?" _I asked her. She looked at me like I had grown an extra head and a duck bill.

"Bella, _of course _it's absolutely necessary that we buy shoes and accessories! It's what makes an outfit whole," she said seriously. "Now, come on," she said, grabbing my hand again. _Uh oh. _"I see a pair of Louboutin boots and I want it!" she had this determined look on her face.

Guess what happened next.

Yeah, I was dragged—again.

Two hours later, my arms were full of shopping bags and my feet hurt like hell. Alice was smiling happily, the weight of the shopping bags in her arms did nothing to dampen her mood—she was glowing! _I guess this is what they meant by 'retail therapy'_. Oh well, I guess retail therapy's not for me! She had this glow, like she just ran a marathon without breaking a sweat. I was definitely glowing alright!

_And sometimes, glowing turns to sweating . . . and panting . . . and sluggishness. _

"Where . . . are we going . . . next?" I managed to struggle out as Alice walked, looking at some more shelves. _Doesn't that pixie _ever _get tired?_

"We're meeting Edward at a café nearby. Don't worry, it's not much of a walk," she replied.

_Thank God!_

* * *

We headed out to meet with Edward at a small café. He was already sitting down at a seat near the window inside by the time we got there and his eyes widened at the sight of all the shopping bags our arms were laden with. I was carrying seven, three filled with clothes and four filled with boxes of shoes. Alice, the little pixie, was carrying _ten _without a single complaint. She must be used to this--it was better than lifting weights at the gym! I dropped the bags onto the nearest chair and took a seat gratefully.

"What did you girls do?" Edward asked as Alice put down her bags. "Buy out the whole mall?"

"Oh, shut it, Edward!" Alice said. "These are just some essentials. Not to mention, your closet needs to be filled so I have some of Bella's clothes to do that for you and I got you this cute shirt!" she told him eagerly. I zoned out as she started drabbling on about this dry-fit shirt she found him while he was to act interested, "mming" and "aahing" at the proper moments.

I looked out the window to see a woman that looked so much like Leah, walking down the street. _Shit, I hope she didn't see me, or if she did, I hope she didn't recognize me!_

Looking back outside, I saw another familiar thing, Jacob's black Cadillac. Leah saw it and went inside kissing Jacob, who I saw was in the driver's seat before they drove away. _I guess that confirms my suspicions that they're still together. _

"Bella?" I heard a voice say. "Bella, love," I felt Edward's hand on my own. I looked up to see his and Alice's eyes staring at me in concern.

"Are you okay, Bella?" Alice asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, I just . . . zoned out for a minute, there. I think I saw . . . Leah and Jacob," I told them quietly. Their eyes widened.

"Really?" Edward asked at the same time that Alice asked "where?"

"Um . . . across the street," I replied. "Leah went inside Jacob's Cadillac and they drove off, I guess they're still together then," I said.

They both looked deep in thought and Alice looked at Edward and he looked back at her. They appeared to be having some sort of silent conversation. I felt slightly left out.

Deciding to break the silence, I spoke up. "Would you like to meet my brother and his girlfriend this weekend?" I asked them, reverting the topic to something cheerier.

Alice nodded eagerly. "Oh, I'd love to meet Rosalie! She seems like quite the character from what you've told me!" _Yeah, and I'll make sure to keep shopping OUT of the topic! I don't want to be dragged on another marathon shopping trip, courtesy of Alice Cullen. _

"And I'd like to meet Emmett, seeing as I already met Rose, sort of," Edward said, scratching the back of his neck as while most likely remembering the time he thought I was a ghost. I bit back a giggle. "I'd like his approval on our relationship," he whispered in my ear. His breath fanned my neck and I blushed slightly. I mustered up all my will power not to fall to the ground in a puddle of goop and turned to him. "You already have it," I said.

He shrugged. "Well, it'd be more formal if he actually _met _me first, right?" he asked.

I sighed, thinking about the inquisition that Emmett would most definitely put Edward through. "I guess you're right," I replied.

"So it's settled," Alice said, clapping her hands happily. "I'll meet you at Edward's place on Saturday at 9:00."

_Alright then._

* * *

**Whew! Another update finished! What do you think of this one? Pass? Fail? **

**If you have any suggestions about what you would like to happen next, please put it in a review or PM me! I'd love to hear from you! **

**I don't know if you notice or not, but sometimes, I use some of your ideas here! So keep them coming! They make the story more interesting! **

**Ten reviews for the next chapter please!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Hi everyone! It's another update! All your reviews and the response in the previous chapter blew me away! WOW! **

**I would like to thank all of the wonderful reviewers who took time to review! ALL OF YOU ROCK! And you all deserve hugs and cookies . . . and some hot chocolate with marshmallows. If only I had some *sigh* **

**So it's another filler chapter. I know, I know, why another one? Well, it's needed. It's not really a filler; it's just a short chapter. **

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 14

Looking for Help in All the Right Places

"_But it's going to take a while . . ." _

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

_They both looked deep in thought and Alice looked at Edward and he looked back at her. They appeared to be having some sort of silent conversation. I felt slightly left out. _

_Deciding to break the silence, I spoke up. "Would you like to meet my brother and his girlfriend this weekend?" I asked them._

_Alice nodded eagerly. "Oh, I'd love to meet Rosalie! She seems like quite the character from what you've told me!"_

"_And I'd like to meet Emmett, seeing as I already met Rose, sort of," Edward said. "I'd like his approval on our relationship," he whispered in my ear. I turned to him. "You already have it," I said._

_He shrugged. "Well, it'd be more formal if he actually met me first, right?" he asked._

_I sighed, thinking about the inquisition that Emmett would most definitely put Edward through. "I guess you're right," I replied._

"_So it's settled," Alice said, clapping her hands happily. "I'll meet you at Edward's place on Saturday at 9:00."_

_Alright then._

**

* * *

**

_Tuesday _

**Rosalie's Point of View**

After Bella left that morning, I found my mind full of thoughts. It was racing from all the events that just happened. Bella met someone, and she was incredibly happy and her parents were coming home tomorrow which will bring on another wave of lying--and guilt. I felt guilty every time I lied to them, but it was necessary and literally for their own good. I was just praying that all of this would be over with so that I wouldn't have to see Renée depressed when I drove her to therapy.

But on the plus side, I was very happy for Bella.

Emmett, on the other hand, was a tougher cookie to crack.

He was putting on a front for Bella by visibly relaxing, but I knew that the thought of another man in her life made him uneasy. The trauma from Jacob's time with her was still visible to him and he was just being a natural big brother. I could also tell that the way Bella talked about Edward kind of made him sad too--he probably felt like he was being replaced but he wasn't--he'll always be her big brother.

"Emmett, are you alright? You've been staring out of the window for almost . . ." I trailed off, checking my watch. "Five minutes," I told him. Five minutes was a _long _time for Emmett to be doing _nothing. _It wasn't normal behavior for him. He'd usually tinker with his Jeep or eat something when he's depressed or happy, or any other emotion. It was his channel.

He sighed. "I'm fine, Rose," he said. "I'm just worried, you can't blame me for being worried, can you?" he asked me.

I walked towards him and buried my face in the crook of his arm. "I guess not," I replied.

"I guess you can say that I'm making up for all the neglect I had for Bella when she was with Jacob." He sighed as the memories played back in his head again. His face said it all.

I touched his arm gently. "You didn't neglect her," I told him firmly.

"Maybe not, but I didn't do enough. The bastard beat her!" he replied loudly.

"Emmett," I said calmly. "The past is the past, what we have to look at now is the present and the future. Edward is a good man and I can tell by the way Bella talks about him. It's different, _she's _different," I told him with so much conviction that I said it like it was the inevitable truth.

He muttered something silently before sighing again. _Emmett had never sighed so many times._

"Fine," he replied, surrendering. I smirked. "But we're still having _The_ _Man Talk_," he said. My smirk fell from my face at that.

_The Man Talk: it was something so serious, that you had to capitalize it. And the 'The' is crucial. _

I was relieved that my twin brother, Jasper, didn't give Emmett The Man Talk when they first met a year ago. It was also a good thing that Jasper was only a minute and twelve seconds older than me—not that he ever let me live it down though. Bella wasn't here then, I would've loved it if she met him too. From the last time I heard from him, he was somewhere in Texas. His job didn't exactly bring him close to home often.

I hope Mr. Cool, Calm and Collected finally found himself a nice girl.

I ran my hands through his hair gently. "Don't worry, Emmett," I whispered in his ear. "No one's going to replace you."

He looked at me, and when he did, I knew that he knew exactly what I was talking about.

* * *

The next morning was the day that Charlie and Renée would come back. I was nervous—to put it lightly. I've never withheld so much information from them before. If they ever found out about Bella being alive, I would be in so much hot water that it wasn't even funny anymore.

_Banish the negative thoughts, Rose, and put yourself together! _

I looked up at Emmett from my place on the bed to find him still blissfully snoring. I stroked his curly hair gently.

"Emmett," I whispered in his ear. He grumbled before turning over. The snoring continued.

"Wake up," I tried again, tickling his ear. He started moving. "Not yet, Rosie, still sleep . . ." he didn't even get to finish it.

I got up, put on my black, silk robe and went to the bathroom. There was a glass resting next to the sink and and evil smile came to my face. _Perfect._

I picked up the glass and turned the tap on; making sure it was turned in the direction of the blue mark. I put my fingers under the streaming water and waited for it to cool to a very, _very _cold temperature. I placed the glass under the faucet and waited for it to fill. Once it was full, I turned the faucet off and saw that little beads of precipitation were forming on the frosted glass.

Walking back to the bedroom, I walked quietly to the bed and waited patiently for Emmett to flip over on his back. When he did, I innocently poured the freezing water over his head.

"WHOA! WHAT WAS THAT?" Emmett asked loudly as he shot up from the bed, shaking his head from side to side. He was getting some water on me too and it was _cold! _

"Good morning, sweetie," I crooned in his ear.

"Aw, Rosie! I was having a dream about eating a quarter pound burger!" he said, pouting. He could be such a kid sometimes.

I put my hands on my hips and glared at him. "A quarter pound burger is more important than me and your parents?" I asked him.

He slapped the heel of his hand on his forehead. "SHIT! They're coming today, aren't' they?" he asked me.

"Yes, and I told you that already, remember?"

"Right," he muttered. He stood up from the bed and went towards the closet while I took the time to admire his bare backside.

_Get dressed, Rose._

Right.

* * *

I put the sheets the sheets in the laundry basket--it was about time they got washed anyway. They smelled like sex and they were wet from this morning's wake-up call. I went out onto the front porch to see Emmett eagerly waiting for the car to stop in front of the door.

Charlie and Renée stepped out, looking a little cheerier and they were _tanned. Nice. _

"Mom, Dad!" Emmett yelled as he careened towards his parents. It was so cute to watch. I wish Bella was here.

I sighed inwardly. I wish I could _tell _them that Bella was here—and happy.

"Emmett!" Renée said happily as she tried to hug her huge son. Her arms only made it up to his sides though. _Sometimes I wonder how she managed to take care of this overgrown little kid. _

She let go of Emmett and went over to hug me. "Rosalie! How has it been? Has everything gone okay without us?" she asked me. _I hated lying to her, but it was necessary!_

"Everything's been great," I replied happily. I wasn't _exactly _a lie. Everything has been going great with the developments Bella has reported and all. "Emmett hasn't gotten in trouble," I said with a laugh.

"Well that's good," Charlie said from the porch steps, still trapped in Emmett's enthusiastic embrace while he held onto the railings for balance. That man was a little kid trapped in the wrong body.

"Son, I'd like to talk to you," I heard Charlie mutter softly to Emmett. He looked at me and nodded, signaling me to distract Renée for a while.

"Um, Renée, do you want to get something to eat?" I asked her as I pushed the front door open.

"Oh yes. First class or not, I never did like plane food," she told me with a laugh.

I laughed in response. "Me either."

**

* * *

**

_Wednesday_

**Bella's Point of View **

"Hello?" I said into the receiver, still feeling a bit groggy. I felt Edward shift underneath me.

"Who is it?" he mumbled, rubbing his eyes to take away the sleepiness. I was curious too. Only a handful of people know the private line in the bedroom.

"Bells! It's me, Emmett!" I heard Emmett's voice boom into the phone.

I sat up quickly while Edward plopped his head back on the pillow after hearing who it was.

"What's wrong?" I asked him.

"Mom and dad came home," he told me.

That woke me up some more. "Really?"

"Yeah, and dad talked to me about something," he replied quietly.

"What about?"

"Jacob Fucking Black," was all Emmett said. The thoughts of my time with him hit me full force as I collapsed onto Edward's chest. He let out a soft 'umph' as the force of my weight hit him.

"What did he have to do with this?" I was really confused right now. I stared up into the ceiling while Edward, sensing my tension, stroked my hair quietly without question.

"He made a deal with dad, a partnership and a possible merger," he told me quickly.

So he was back to thinking. If he made a merger, and they became partners, they'd share the same company. If one of them just _happened _to get into a little _accident, _the other one would take over everything.

And if one of them, let's just say . . . _died_, the other partner would get _everything. _

Damn.

I shared my theories with Emmett and I could hear him grunting at the thought of Jacob trying something to hurt dad. We knew him—he's not the type to hesitate on things like this and he is not the bluffing type either.

"We have to do this fast," I told him. "But you need to buy us some time and try to talk dad out of this, when's the signing?" I asked him.

"Um . . . in three weeks," he replied.

"Emmett, meet me and Edward on Saturday at 9:00 in the morning. Take Rosalie with you and make sure mom and dad don't know where you're going," I said, before telling him the address to Edward's place.

"Okay, will do," he told me before hanging up.

I put the receiver back in its cradle and took a deep breath.

"What's wrong, love?" Edward asked me quietly.

I told him about the merger and the partnership and shared all my theories and plans.

"Are you sure you don't want to move the meeting to Friday?"

I shook my head and sighed. "No, Saturday's fine. I need to do more thinking."

_

* * *

Thursday_

**Rosalie's Point of View **

"Rosalie?" I heard a very familiar voice say behind me. I turned around and came face-to-face with the male version of myself, my twin, Jasper.

"Jasper!" I yelled loudly, running into his arms and giving him a tight hug. "I missed you!" I pulled away and put my hands on his shoulders, looking at him confusedly. "I thought you were in Texas?"

He shrugged as he let go of me. "I was, but the case there finished up quite quickly so I thought I'd come here for a break. The boss said it was fine and gave me a couple months off, considering the fact that I hadn't taken a single break in two years!" he told me happily.

I was beyond ecstatic. I missed him so much!

"That means you get to spend time with us when we meet our friends on Saturday!" Emmett boomed from behind us.

"Are you sure?" I asked him.

"Jasper," Emmett said. "You're a detective, right?"

He scratched his head. "Not really; I work for the FBI," he replied.

"Close enough, I think you can come with us," Emmett said smugly--he had a plan.

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

I knocked on Vicky's door, praying that she was home. I took extra precautions in going here today; I even did the "disguise" that Alice made for me when we went to Barney's.

The door opened, revealing Victoria in sweat pants and a white tank top with a plaid shirt over it_. _Her fiery, red hair was messier than usual and I was guessing that she just woke up. _I probably should've called first.  
_

"Vicky, I'm so sorry that I just barged in on you like this! I should've called first! It's okay if I go and I'm sorry for disturbing y—" she clamped a hand over my mouth to stop my rambling.

"It's okay, Bella," she said. "I don't have work for the week, so I'm fine. I was just catching up on some sleeping and I was making breakfast so you didn't wake me up. By the way, long time, no see!" she told me eagerly, leading me into her apartment.

I sat down on the couch while Vicky made some coffee. "Here," she said, handing me a cup as she sat down.

"So what's wrong?" she asked, giving me a pointed look.

"Well . . . Emmett told me something about Jacob's plan for a merger and a partnership with my dad," I said, looking at her from over the rim of my coffee cup, observing the smoke while I gauged her reaction.

She was surprised, of course. "He finally made a move?" she asked, probably thinking up the same theories I had.

I nodded. "Oh yeah," I replied, drawing it out.

"We're going to have to strategize," she said seriously.

"Okay," I replied, taking a sip from my coffee.

"But it's going to take a while," she added remorsefully.

"Can we plan something on Saturday?" I asked her.

She nodded. "Oh yeah, just give me the details and we're good to go."

**

* * *

And there you go! Two updates in a week! And they're consecutive too! The next update will probably be next week on . . . Thursday? Yeah. Thursday! So wait for it then! It'll be longer, and sillier—promise! **

**Ten reviews please! Please? And remember: give your suggestions and what-not!Put it in a review or send me a PM! I'd love to hear your ideas!  
**

**Jayleen-Cullen-Whitlock-Hale, here is the beginning of your suggestion! See it? I hope you did! **


	16. Chapter 16

**Hello all! It's the update I promised—and it's even early! This chapter is kind of long . . . or longer than usual, at least. Read on and you'll find out. I divided it into two parts (the mostly male half and the mostly female half) This is part one (the mostly male half)  
**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 15

Saturday (Pt. 1)

_You mean hacking and entering? I'm in! _

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

"_Well . . . Emmett told me something about Jacob's plan for a merger and a partnership with my dad," I said, looking at her from over the rim of my coffee cup, observing the smoke while I gauged her reaction. _

_She was surprised, of course. "He finally made a move?" she asked._

_I nodded. "Oh yeah," I replied, drawing it out. _

"_We're going to have to strategize," she said seriously._

"_Okay," I replied, taking a sip from my coffee._

"_But it's going to take a while," she added remorsefully. _

"_Can we plan something on Saturday?" I asked her._

_She nodded. "Oh yeah, just give me the details and we're good to go." _

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

Saturday.

I opened my eyes that morning and realized that it was Saturday—_the _Saturday. I rubbed my eyes gently to clear my slightly blurred vision before turning over on the bed. When I did, I immediately met Edward's emerald orbs. They were shining, a sure sign that he was refreshed and very awake. I, on the other hand, am not a morning person so I probably looked bleary and unfocused and to top it all off, my hair was a complete haystack.

"Good morning," he said; his voice was like crushed velvet, hoarse but still smooth—if that was even possible. He gave me a light peck on the lips.

I smiled into the kiss. "It is now," I answered before pulling away reluctantly. The thought of today's events were buzzing around through my mind in confused circles. I had my worries, of course. I was hoping that they'd all get along and try _not_ to kill each other, especially Emmett killing Edward or sending him running for the hills. _I would not like that. _

"What time is it?" I mumbled to Edward, who was staring at the ceiling like it held the very meaning of life. He turned to the digital clock on his nightstand.

"7:00," he replied.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked him, trailing my arms up and down gently across his bare chest. Ever since we professed our love for each other, he stopped wearing his pajama top to bed and just settled on wearing the pants—leaving his scrumptious chest completely bare.

_Not that I had any complaints. _

"Nothing," he answered quietly. "Just thinking about what's gonna happen today."

I sat up. "It's good to know I'm not the only one," I told him with a smile before kissing him gently on the lips. "I'm going to take a shower." Getting out of bed was a difficult task because even though Edward wasn't doing anything to stop me—not like he had to _do _anything anyway, I'd stay all too willingly—I _really _wanted to stay there longer but my rational side wouldn't hear of it so I walked to the bathroom reluctantly.

Stripping out of my clothes, I heard Edward chuckle from the bedroom. "Care for some company?" I heard him say from the bed.

I snickered, even though he couldn't see it. "As much as I'd love some," I answered, pausing for a moment. "We won't finish by nine if our lives depended on it!" I finished with a laugh.

"Suit yourself!" he replied playfully. I could hear the rustling of sheets from the room, meaning that he was already fixing the bed and getting ready to start the day.

_Ugh. I am so not a morning person!_

* * *

My appetite didn't come easily to me during breakfast—much to my dismay. I didn't want to pass out during the meeting or interrupt their planning with a loud grumble from my stomach, but every time I looked at my food, my thoughts came back to what's supposed to happen later and my stomach did more flips.

"Is there something wrong, love?" I heard Edward say from across the table, his hand covering mine gently.

I shook my head. "Nothing's wrong, just nervous and anxious," I answered, stuffing a forkful of some fruit crepe in my mouth. It was delicious! I let the sweet taste of the crepe calm my nerves as I tried (and failed) not to think about later. It'll happen when it does. I need to calm down for the sake of my sanity and my appetite.

My focus was solely on the crepe. I was watching the thin, caramel syrup drip from the kiwis and strawberries inside. I twirled my fork around the whipped cream as I tried to get my mind off of . . .later.

_Ugh! I can't do it! _

I groaned and stabbed the poor crepe with my fork. Edward looked at me in concern but I just sighed.

_Damn nerves! _

* * *

**Rosalie's Point of View**

"Are you sure we have the right place?" Jasper asked from the backseat. He was like a little kid on a car trip. He kept asking "Are we there yet?" more times then I could count and to add salt to the burning wound, Emmett decided to join him. They were driving me nuts! As much as I love them, they can be so fucking _annoying _sometimes that I wished their seats could launch up into the air.

_Hey, that's not such a bad idea now that I think about it . . ._

I sighed and looked at the address I noted down on my phone, then at the number in front of the house. "This is the address she told me," I replied with a shrug. Emmett let out a low whistle.

"Look at that crib! Whoa! Ultimate bachelor pad!" he said eagerly.

He was right, it wasn't like Charlie's more classic looking house. This one was more modern and more _masculine. __No wonder the boys are drooling over it. _

"Yeah!" Jasper agreed from the backseat and Emmett reached his hand back for Jasper to slap.

I rolled my eyes. _Men. _Ever since Jasper came over, they've been doing nothing but male bonding time. Emmett said something about his sperm cells dying every time I dragged him shopping. It was retail therapy. When will they ever understand?

We reached the small guard house and a blond-haired man asked me to roll down my window.

I gave him an alluring smile. "I'm Rosalie Hale, here to see Edward Cullen?" I told him. He looked back at the guard house to see his fellow guard giving him the thumbs up as the gates opened.

"Whoa!" Jasper and Emmett sighed in unison as we passed the driveway wrapping around manicured lawns. They could be such kids. I parked my red M3 on the side of the driveway and we went out. The _kids_ raced to the front door.

When I got there, I could see Emmett tapping on a small TV screen next to the door while Jasper laughed quietly next to him—his shoulders shaking at his attempt not to burst out laughing. I threw him a look and he just shrugged; a mischievous smile on his face.

"Hello? Anybody there?" Emmett asked, tapping the TV screen repeatedly. I swatted his hand away.

"You press the doorbell, idiot!" I told him before pressing the button and the TV screen lit up. We heard buzzing above our heads and saw that a camera was pointed at us.

"Hey, at least I'm a cute idiot!" Emmett retorted before making faces at the camera—pulling Jasper along with him, pretending like they were hosting a TV show. I looked back at the screen to see Bella's face pop up before me.

"Hey, Rose!" she said happily before a look of confusion crossed her face as she looked off to the side, probably at the screen inside.

"What . . . are they doing?" she asked me uncertainly, her confused tone clear through the small speakers.

I laughed at her expression. "Nothing, your brother and my brother are just being the idiots that they are," I replied to her.

She smiled. "Oh! Is that Jasper?" she asked.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, that's him, and sometimes . . . I wonder about how we're actually related."

"Hey! I heard that!" Jasper said from behind me.

"Let it go! Your first impression sucks!" I retorted.

The front door opened and I saw Bella again. She looked . . . highly amused.

_I mean, who wouldn't be amused? We have a two-man idiot show here!_

"C'mon, _men,_" I scoffed as Bella let us through the door. We exploded in a fit of giggles once we were inside.

"Tell me, Bella, how is Jasper the older one from both of us?" I asked her incredulously.

She covered her mouth, muffling her laughter. "I don't know," she answered, shaking her head.

"BELLA!" Emmett yelled, picking the poor girl up and giving her a bone-crushing hug. Bella was starting to turn red, then purple, then blue.

"Um, Emmett, you can put Bella down now!" I said. Bella smiled at me and I winked back, shaking my head. He put his sister down gently and looked at her sheepishly.

"Yeah, yeah, I know, you missed me too," Bella said with a smile. He gave her a huge grin back before sitting down next to Jasper and they continued staring lustfully at Edward's home entertainment system.

"Thank you for saving me," Bella said gratefully as we walked to the kitchen.

"No problem," I replied.

"Would you like a drink?" she asked me. I nodded my head and she led me to the kitchen. A woman was preparing a pitcher of soda. She had brown hair like Bella, but she wore glasses.

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

I sat down on the couch after breakfast while Edward sorted some things out for today. The doorbell rang, a light, tinkling ring that rang out through the whole room. Walking to the door, I headed for the small screen off to the side and pressed the green button. The screen flickered to life and I was immediately met with the sight of _Emmett _with some blond guy, pretending to be talk show hosts on camera 1. They were talking about . . . purple gelatin with lemons in it. _Okay?_

I saw Rosalie standing behind them, looking . . . well, annoyed and I pressed another button, showing me camera 2, which was on Rose's side. I pressed another button and I saw that she could see me on the screen. I gave her a small wave.

"Hey, Rose!" I told her happily before switching cameras and looked at Emmett and the blond guy, still engrossed in their little role-play.

"What . . . are they doing?" I asked her uncertainly, before switching the camera to her again to see her reaction.

She laughed. "Nothing, your brother and my brother are just being the idiots that they are," she answered.

So the blond guy was Jasper! No wonder he looked so familiar. "Oh! Is that Jasper?" I asked her, a smile on my face. I guess today really is a day for making new friends.

"Yeah, that's him," she replied. "And sometimes . . . I wonder about how we're actually related," she finished, rolling her eyes.

"Hey! I heard that!" Jasper's faint voice said from behind her. _Wow, they even sound alike! They really are twins._

"Let it go! Your first impression sucks!," Rose retorted.

_Yep, definitely twins._

I shut the screen and opened the front door to let them in. Emmett and Jasper were still bickering, but shut up once they saw the inside—or rather, the part that they could see from where they were standing, slack-jawed, at the doorway.

I was highly amused at their reactions.

"C'mon, _men,_" Rosalie told them, pulling them inside the house. She walked to me once they were settled and we collapsed into a fit of girly giggles.

"Tell me, Bella, how is Jasper the older one from both of us?" Rose asked me incredulously.

I bit my lip and covered my mouth to stifle my laughter. "I don't know," I replied with a shake of my head. Just then, my dear brother decided to cut off all my circulation by swooping me up into the air and into one _huge _hug.

"BELLA!" he said loudly, swinging me from side to side. I was starting to get nauseous.

"Um, Emmett, you can put Bella down now!" Rosalie said. He put me down gently and I smiled at her, she gave me a wink back.

Emmett looked at me sheepishly. "Yeah, yeah, I know, you missed me too," I told him, putting him out of his misery. He gave me a huge grin before taking his place back to Jasper again as they resumed staring at Edward's home entertainment system.

_It's like they finally realized the very meaning of life! _I thought with a laugh.

I walked to Rosalie. "Thank you for saving me," I told her as we walked into the kitchen.

"No problem," she said smugly.

"Would you like a drink?" I offered. She nodded her head and I led her to the inside of the kitchen where Angela was pouring some soda into a pitcher.

_Time to make the first introductions then. . ._

"Angela," I said softly. She looked up at me and smiled, her eyes darting to Rose immediately.

"Rosalie," I told her, holding her arm gently. "This is Angela, Edward's head maid and a very close and trustworthy friend," I said, gesturing to Angela who was standing there shyly.

Rose smiled and headed over to her, giving her a hug. "It's nice to meet you," she said.

I heard footsteps coming from the stairs and I left them there to chat while I met Edward who was on his way down.

"Hello, love," he told me quietly, kissing my forehead. I chanced a glance at Emmett and Jasper and let out a sigh of relief when I saw them admiring the entertainment system.

"Are you ready to meet my brother, his girlfriend and his girlfriend's twin?" I asked him.

"Rosalie has a twin?"

I laughed. "Yeah, she does. His name is Jasper and he's her fraternal twin. They are very much alike if you look closely; I mean that when it comes to the aspect of personality."

We walked over to the couch and I tapped my brother's shoulder, causing him to snap out of his staring contest with the TV. He stood up and took on the "intimidating older brother look" as he sized Edward up. I threw him a look; he just shrugged.

"Emmett, this is Edward. Edward, this is my _wonderful _big brother, Emmett," I said, emphasizing the word 'wonderful' in hopes that some flattery will get him to soften up. It worked.

"Listen, Edward," Emmett started. "I just want to get one thing straight before we do any more chit-chat. You hurt Bella, I hurt you, understand?" he told him sternly.

I flinched at Emmett's overprotective demeanor and looked at Edward who looked so serene. He smiled at him.

"Don't worry, Emmett. I won't hurt her, and if I do—you have my permission to do whatever you want with me. I'll completely understand because I'll do the same thing if I were in your position," Edward replied confidently, which made Emmett grin.

"Good," he said, clapping Edward on the back with a little too much force, causing him to stumble forward slightly.

"I want to thank you for taking Bella in too," Emmett said quietly, as if he was having this silent conversation with Edward. I felt slightly left out again. Darn.

"It's no problem," he replied with a smile, looking at me. "She's amazing," he said quietly and I blushed deep scarlet.

"Yes she is," Emmett said, looking at me, before sitting down again. Rosalie walked over to us.

"But we're still having that talk later . . ." I heard Emmett mutter under his breath.

_Damn. _

"Edward," I said, grabbing his elbow and pointing to Rose. "You've already met Rose," I told him. Rose snickered, probably remembering the last time they met and how she managed to trick him. Edward let out a low chuckle, shaking Rose's hand gently.

"Yes we have," he replied.

"This is my twin brother, Jasper," Rose said, pulling Jasper over.

"Hey there," Jasper said, throwing Edward a wave.

"You really do look alike," Edward mused.

Rose rolled her eyes. "I don't know why, though," she said.

Before we could go on any further with the introductions (and the twins' bickering), the doorbell rang again.

"Excuse me," Edward said as he walked over to the screen before answering the door.

"Hello, big brother!" A tinkling voice said over the speakers. Edward smiled fondly at his little sister through the monitor before opening the door. When he did, Alice stepped in and gave him a big hug.

"Hi everyone, I'm Alice!" she said happily as she greeted everyone. She really was the exuberant one.

Everyone looked confused. I laughed and pointed to her. "She's Edward's younger sister."

"It's a midget!" Emmett said, taking in Alice's tiny form.

"I prefer _Pixie," _Alice huffed, hands on her hips. "You must be Emmett," she said to him, recalling the stories I told her during our shopping trip.

"That's me!" he said proudly.

"You're a giant!" she said.

"Well you're a _pixie, _so I guess we're even," Emmett replied. Alice nodded.

She looked over at Rose. "And you must be Rosalie," she said, walking over to her. "I love your shoes! Are those Prada?" she asked, pointing to Rosalie's red heels.

Rose twirled her foot in appreciation—finally, someone who could understand her! I couldn't understand the difference between that and her other five pairs of red heels anyway.

"Yes, they are," she proudly. Alice clapped her hands. "They are so cute!"

Rosalie smiled. "I know, right?"

She turned to Jasper and looked at him a little longer than she did the others with this glazed look in her eyes. "You're Jasper," she said quietly.

_Well that was a shock. _

"How'd you know his name?" I asked Alice. I just met Jasper today and I never even knew his name until today.

She shrugged. "You just looked like a Jasper."

I looked at Edward and saw him narrow his eyes slightly at his sister's reaction to Jasper.

Jasper, on the other hand, smiled widely and Alice smiled back at him. _It_ _looks like love is in the air. _

_"_I've been waiting for you," Alice whispered to him quietly, but I still heard.

"Well I'm sorry, ma'am," Jasper answered with a slight Southern drawl to his tone--the kind Rosalie got rid of years ago.

We settled down in our seats while waiting for Vicky to arrive. Edward and I shared the loveseat, Emmett and Rose were on the couch and Alice and Jasper were sitting on separate recliners that were next to each other, having one of those "wordless conversations." I looked away, not wanting to disrupt their moment with my staring.

The doorbell rang again and I went to the door, checking the screen to see Vicky waving sheepishly at the camera. I laughed and let her in.

"Hey, Bella!" she said, giving me a hug. "Sorry I'm late but the traffic is killer!" She noticed the other people looking at her and she waved at them too. "Hello everyone!"

Suddenly, I heard a loud: "VICKY!!" and then saw Emmett sweep Victoria up in a hug.

She patted his back. "Hey there, Big Bear, nice to see you again!"

We made the necessary introductions and it turns out that Vicky and Jasper knew each other.

"Hey Mr. C," she greeted Jasper when she stood in front of him.

"Mr. C?" Alice asked.

"Mr. Cool, Calm and Collected," Vicky replied. We all shot her confused looks as to what it meant.

"Jasper here works for the FBI and is the calmest person on the team," she started. "Even when we're badgering him for coordinates or when he's hiding in a van with all the tech stuff, he stays _cool_. That's why we named him that."

"Tech stuff? Coordinates?" Rosalie asked, looking at Jasper. He blushed lightly and shrugged.

Vicky clapped him on the shoulder. "You never told them your job?" he asked him. Jasper shrugged again.

"He's the tech guy. He works with the computers and the tracking and all that other stuff that we don't understand, he even works the field . . . _sometimes_," Vicky told us.

"Awww, he's . . . your . . . geek!" Rosalie said in a fit of laughter.

"I am _not _their _geek_," Jasper mumbled, blushing harder and burying his head in his hands.

Alice whispered in his ear and luckily, I was near enough to hear what she said, yet again. "It's okay, Jazz, I think it's kind of cute," that sentiment immediately put a smile to his face.

I gave everyone a moment to talk and get to know each other better before speaking up: "Okay, everyone . . ." I trailed off, swallowing before continuing. "I asked you all to come here to meet each other and because I need your help," I said nervously.

Alice raised her hand like a student in class. "You already have our help, Bella. That's why we came here." They all nodded in agreement and I couldn't help the swell of emotion that went through me when they said that. I felt Edward's arm wrap around my waist reassuringly. I really did have great friends.

"Thanks everyone. You really are wonderful friends. Especially Alice and Jasper, you just met me . . . and you're already willing to help?" I asked dubiously.

"Of course we are," Jasper replied. "That's what friends are for."

"Ok then!" Vicky said; a sly look on her face. "Let's get planning!"

* * *

**Jasper's Point of View**

Coming back to see my sister may just have been the smartest decision I've ever made. I scanned the room and saw all my new friends working together and talking. I looked up to see Vicky writing something on Edward's glass whiteboard (I don't know why he has one) and I looked to my side to see Alice listening intently. Her expression while she was trying to take it all in was . . . adorable. I don't know what I feel for her yet but I do know that there's something there. She was so cute and cheery and wonderful and . . . and . . . just . . . wow.

_She's everything I'm looking for and everything I've already found. _

_A name for face. Perfect.  
_

Vicky looked at me and asked me a question, effectively snapping me out of my Alice-induced haze. "Jazz, do you have your laptop?"

"Yeah, I do. It's in the car; do you want me to get it?" I asked back.

"Yes please," she answered. "We may need you to access some . . . things," she answered mysteriously. Everyone else looked confused.

_You mean, hacking and entering? I'm in! _I nodded, understanding her previous statement.

I stood up and walked to Rose who tossed me the car keys before turning back and listening to the discussion. I went to the car and grabbed my laptop from the backseat. When I stood back up, I was startled to see one of the maids standing in front of me.

"Hi, I'm Jessica, what's your name?" she asked, in what I assumed was supposed to be a flirtatious voice but her expression was quite . . . creepy. She was batting her eyes at me a little too much.

"Do you have something in your eye?" I asked, not answering her previous question.

She touched her eye and her brows furrowed in confusion. "Uh . . . no, why?"

"It's just that . . . you're blinking quite a lot," I pointed out.

"Oh, uh . . . that was nothing! I, uh . . . have to go now!" She left, embarrassed. I raised my eyebrows at her hasty retreat, shrugged and walked back into the house with a confused expression on my face.

When I went inside, Vicky looked at me again. "Good, you're back," she said, looking away before doing a double-take. She looked confused. "What's with the face?"

I told them about my encounter with Jessica and they all burst out laughing.

"Hi, I'm Jessica, what's your name?" Emmett said in a high-pitched, breathy voice that had the girls collapse in giggles.

"Shut up, Emmett," I muttered. I sat down and plugged the laptop in. After the laughter died down, we all went back to the matter at hand. Vicky told me an address and I logged in, knowing what to do already.

"What is he doing?" I heard Bella ask her.

"He's going to come up with the floor plan of Jacob's office," she replied.

"Oh."

"So, how is this going to work?" Rose asked. "I mean, what's the plan?"

Vicky answered her question. "We're going to find out exactly _why _Jacob wants to merge the companies so badly. I mean, really, he is just so _into _it that there must be something more than money involved," she said.

"Don't worry about it, Vicky," Emmett piped in. "I can try to talk to dad and buy us more time."

"Hey, guys! I found it!" I announced as they all huddled around my seat.

"So this is the layout of Jacob's office . . ." Vicky trailed off, analyzing it.

"We need a mole," she announced all of a sudden.

"A mole?" Alice asked in disgust. "What do we need a _mole _for?"

"Not _that _kind of mole! I was talking about an insider to work the floors and take pictures of some paperwork or maybe to _overhear _some conversations and stuff," Vicky explained.

"But the only people he _doesn't _know are Alice and Jasper," Bella told her.

Emmett raised his hand. "Say no more, people!" He grabbed his cell phone from his back pocket and dialed a number. "I've got this one covered!" He walked to the kitchen and spoke with someone in hushed tones. We watched him in silence before he came back with a huge grin on his face.

"Done deal?" Vicky asked Emmett. He smiled smugly. "Oh yeah, he said he'll come meet us when we convene next week," he announced.

"Who's he?" Alice asked.

Emmett looked at her. "You'll find out soon enough."

"We're going to come back here next week?" Rose asked him.

He shrugged. "Well, yeah. This is the safest place to meet unless it's not okay with Edward," Emmett mused. Edward smiled at him and gave him the thumbs up, signaling permission to use the place.

"Then it's settled," Vicky said. "We'll meet here with the mole next week and we make the final plans. Jasper, save those floor plans and guys, make sure _no one _knows about this, got it?" she asked. We all nodded.

Emmett clapped his hands eagerly. "All right!" he said eagerly. "Now we can watch the game on the TV!" Emmett announced triumphantly as our gaze fell on the TV. Edward nodded and we all high-tailed for the seats nearest to the screen.

"Men," I heard Rosalie mumble before she went out to the pool with the rest of the girls.

"Women," we all muttered before putting our attention back to the game on screen that was flashing in our faces in _high definition. _

_Life is good . . . _

* * *

**Edward's Point of View**

I wasn't exactly what you would call a sports fan, but since my dad was a huge sports fan, I had the entertainment system set-up just for him for when he comes over to watch with me. I didn't exactly have "man friends" before.

_But I guess now I do._

"Any of you want a beer?" I asked Emmett and Jasper.

They all mumbled, "Sure!" without taking their eyes off the screen. Grabbing three beers from the fridge, I carried theirs to the couch and went back for mine. Emmett stood next to me since it was the commercial break.

"Hey, Edward, can we talk?" he asked me.

I shrugged. "Sure."

Emmett turned to Jasper. "Hey, Jazz! Edward and I will be gone for a sec," he told him.

Jasper raised his beer up to Emmett in consent and took a swig of it. We walked to the counter of the mini bar I had, and sat down before Emmett started talking.

"What are your intentions with my sister?" Emmett asked me bluntly. _He's not the type to beat around the bush, _I thought.

"Well, I love her very much and she knows it but for now, I'm waiting for her to say _when _and to say _what _because I'm putting her in charge of the relationship. I'm not giving in to her, per se; I'm just letting her set the pace. She came from a past that wasn't good for her so I'm letting her call all the shots. I _do _want to marry her, believe me, I really do, but I'm waiting for this whole thing to be over and done with before that," I answered. _Let's hope my blatant honesty doesn't get me murdered in my sleep. _

To my surprise, Emmett _smiled. _"You're a good guy, Edward," he said, clapping me in the shoulder. "That doesn't mean I'll let my guard down, though," he added sternly.

He pointed at me. "Remember, you hurt my sister, I'll _kill _you and burn the pieces!" he said menacingly.

I nodded. He smiled again. "Now let's go watch the game, I can hear Jasper hollering already!"

**

* * *

And that ends chapter 15! Pass or fail? Please, review! Send me some love coz that's how I keep going!**

**Also, send in your suggestions and reviews! Jayleen-Cullen-Whitlock-Hale, here is another part of your suggestion, as best as it can be placed in that situation! See it? Do you see it now? :)) **

**Next update will be on Saturday. Ok? Ok!**

****One small preview** **

**Chapter 16: Saturday (Pt. 2) Girls and Moles**

"So, you're _not _gay?" Victoria asked.

**By the way, I FORGOT to put this in (sorry!) but I want you to read chapter 13 (APOV) then this one in JPOV**. **If you noticed something (like, let's say . . . that Alice knows Jasper) then good for you! If you haven't . . . well, start noticing :)) Confused? Of course you are, but it will all be revealed in due time, people. :D**


	17. Chapter 17

**Hey there, everyone! Here's part two of the previous chapter! And it's on time too! (Actually it's early since I forgot I had a dental appointment and couldn't post it on time)**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 16

Saturday Pt. 2: Girls and Moles

"_So when did you plan on telling us?"_

_

* * *

Previously . . ._

"_Well, I love her very much and she knows it but for now, I'm waiting for her to say when and to say what because I'm putting her in charge of the relationship. I'm not giving in to her, per se; I'm just letting her set the pace. She came from a past that wasn't good for her so I'm letting her call all the shots. I do want to marry her, believe me, I really do, but I'm waiting for this whole thing to be over and done with before that," I answered. Let's hope my blatant honesty doesn't kill me. _

_To my surprise, Emmett smiled. "You're a good guy, Edward," he said, clapping me in the shoulder. "That doesn't mean I'll let my guard down, though," he added sternly. _

_He pointed at me. "Remember, you hurt my sister, I'll kill you and burn the pieces!" he said menacingly. _

_I nodded. He smiled again. "Now let's go watch the game, I can hear Jasper hollering already!" _

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

While the men were having their very much needed "male bonding time," the girls and I decided to hit the pool.

"Bella, we have no swimsuits!" Alice exclaimed as she stared longingly at the pool. She so obviously wanted to get into the water, but knowing her, she wouldn't want her clothes wet.

I looked at all of them before saying, "Well, you can roll up your pants." I looked at Vicky when I said that. "And your skirts won't get wet," I said to Alice and Rose. They looked at each other and shrugged before removing their shoes and dipping their feet into the warm water of Edward's heated pool.

"What's the plan now?" Rose asked Vicky as she swirled her hand around the water.

"We have to talk to Emmett's mole and then we actually do some _real _planning," she answered.

Alice's nose wrinkled at Vicky's reply. "You know, when you said _'talk to Emmett's mole', _it's sounded _completely _wrong," she stated. We all took a second to ponder on what Alice said before bursting out in laughter. Alice looked towards the window for a quick second before turning back to us.

"I'll just bring my shoes inside," she announced. We all nodded and waited for her to get up before resuming our conversations.

**

* * *

**

**Alice's Point of View**

_That was a close one, _I thought as I entered the house, my shoes in one hand. I grabbed a towel off the side of the pool before entering and sat on the back steps to dry my feet. I heard tapping noises nearby but ignored it. The place would have been eerily quiet if it weren't for Emmett's faint screams. That's the reason I love these backstairs, they're quiet and private enough for me to do my thinking and no one else knew it was here but me, Angela and Edward.

Back to my thoughts, when I caught Jasper's eye from the living room window, I knew I had to get out of there before the girls could suspect something. I get that glazed look on my eyes, I could _feel _myself getting it and I was still unable to control it. I didn't expect to see him at all--especially not with my brother in the same situation.

Call it love at first sight, but that's how I felt for Jasper the moment I laid eyes on him . . .

. . . in a Texas train station.

* * *

_Flashback! Dallas, Texas_

_I pulled my coat closer to my body as I angled my umbrella _over my head _since it wouldn't seem to cooperate. Whoever said it was always dry in Texas was lying—or I happened to be an unlucky girl who got caught in the rain while waiting for my train to arrive—which wouldn't be for another . . . 2 hours or so. _

Damn that urge to take pictures or people in the train station!

_I was a photographer, I got hefty amounts paid for those photos that I took, which is why I go around the country taking pictures of anything and everything! Being a photographer had its perks, though—like the fact that I was here for a reason . . . to go to Los Angeles, California_! The shopping was now taking over my brain before I could control it.

Ugh! Quit thinking about those boots you wanted and focus! _It's pouring out here and all I can think about is shoes. I have a problem that I don't have a problem with. Does that classify it as a problem then? _

_I'm losing my mind.  
_

_I found a small diner near the place where I was supposed to be waiting and pulled my bags along behind me—which were thankfully covered in the plastic that I bought for emergencies only! _

Hah! Take that, Edward! Now let's see who says that packing plastic isn't essential!

_The diner was small, but warm and cozy. It was also full, so there were no more empty .  
_

Luck _really_ wasn't on my side today.

_I walked to the end of the diner, checking out the people's tables to see if any of them were about to finish so that I could sit down, but most of them weren't even half finished yet, being caught in their own conversations and all. I sighed._

_Just then, I saw the table at the very end. There was a lone man sitting on it, he had blond hair and from what I could see of his eyes that was peeking over the newspaper he was reading, they were blue. He looked tall and lanky, but still muscular, like that man from my recent fairytale-like dreams of myself being swept up in a romantic affair--ridiculous, I know.  
_

Could it be?

_His table was bare, except for a full cup of coffee, I looked back at the other tables and saw that all of them had more than one person occupying it so I took my chances and walked over to him. _

"_Excuse me, may I sit here?" I asked._

_My voice must've pulled him out of his reading because he looked up at me and I came face to face with _the man of my dreams_—or rather, _from _my dreams. _

"_It's you," I said quietly. He looked at me with a surprised expression on his face before it melted into a charming smile._

"_Hello there, ma'am," he said—a slight Southern drawl in his voice, "Care to join me?" _

_I smiled widely back at him before sitting down. "I'd love to, thank you!" _

"_So what is a lovely lady like you doing in place like this, partially wet?" he asked me, eyeing my slightly wet hair and partially wet coat. _

"_Well . . ." I started, trailing off before launching into the full tale of how I got here. He was patient, a kind expression on his face as he listened to the misfortune I went through on this trip, from initially losing my luggage and my crappy hotel to being caught in the rain due to my bizarre urges. He never interrupted, but when he did, it was like he knew _when _to say what he had to say. Before I knew it, I heard the train coming and I checked my watch—two hours had already passed. _

_I looked at him ruefully before saying: "I have to go. I'm sorry for keeping you, by the way." I hadn't even paused to think about _his _time. Shit, I'm a horrible, selfish person. I wanted to smack myself.  
_

_He looked at me, disappointed. "I guess so and don't worry about _my _time. I spent it rather nicely," he said with a wink. "I'm Jasper Hale, by the way," he added. _

"_Just call me the girl of your dreams and we'll see each other again," I replied with a wink as I boldly went over and pecked his cheek before walking off. I chanced a glance over my shoulder to see him touching his cheek—the goofiest grin was on his face. _

_End flashback!_

* * *

I was so preoccupied with my thoughts that I hadn't noticed that my feet were already completely dry. I stood up to leave them on my little shoe rack behind the stairs when I heard footsteps from the hall. I stood up slowly and walked towards the sound. I was about to turn the corner when I was pulled off to the side.

I looked up to see Jasper smiling down at me.

"It's you," I said quietly, quite similar to what I said during the first time we met.

"It's me!" he answered happily. "I can't believe you're here," he said, amazed.

I looked smug. "I told you we'd see each other again!"

"So does that mean I get a real kiss now?" He asked boldly. That surprised me, but I couldn't care less. I hopped up and gave him passionate kiss. I poured all the emotions I felt from the past months without him into it, conveying my feelings in way words could not express.

"So when did you plan on telling us?" A voice suddenly said from behind us.

_Oh crap. _

* * *

**Bella's Point of View**

"Is it _hot _out here or what?" Vicky asked, fanning herself with her hand and pulling her mass of red hair up into a ponytail.

_Oh yeah. _I was sweltering too and it was only July! "It's hot alright!" I replied, wiping my forehead. "I'll go get some drinks," I announced, standing up. _And check on Alice, she's been taking quite long . . ._

"Please do!" Rosalie said, wiping her forehead as well. Rosalie Hale did _not _enjoy sweating.

I stood up and grabbed a towel from the small rack near the side of the pool and dried my feet off before slipping on my flip flops. I wandered in through the back, passing the backstairs and as I was about to turn the corner I heard . . . _moaning_?

Slipping into the shadows, I walked cautiously around the corner and found _Alice and Jasper _quite wrapped up in each other. If I weren't so surprised right now, I would 'aww-ing'.

I crossed my arms in front of me and decided to break their little love-fest before Edward saw them and pummeled Jasper to the ground.

"So when did you plan on telling us?" I asked, speaking up and effectively breaking their make-out session.

They looked at me sheepishly, blushing madly in ways that could rival my own. We walked to the backstairs and I waited for them to explain.

* * *

"And that's how we met!" Alice said, looking over at Jasper fondly while he was holding her hand. We were sitting on the steps of the backstairs when Alice told us the romantic tale of how they met.

"See? Your tale is plenty romantic, so don't go around saying that mine is! Mine was just . . . creepy," I said, remembering the time I thought it was so stalker-ish.

She shook her head. "I still like yours though," she said.

"How'd you and Edward meet?" Jasper asked.

I looked over at him. "I'll let Alice fill you in on that one," I told him before I was brought back to the matter at hand.

"Wait!" I announced, raising my hands. "You two are getting me sidetracked! _When will you tell the others?_" I asked them.

They both looked nervous at my question.

"Oh, come on! It's not like they'll eat you! Why don't we start with Alice telling the girls and you telling the guys?" I told Jasper. "That way Edward can give you the whole big brother talk," I said teasingly. He ran his hand down his face before sighing.

"It's better they found out from us," he said, relenting. I smiled.

"Now you go do that, Alice, let's go!" I replied, taking Alice's hand and dragging her outside, leaving Jasper alone to his thoughts by the stairs.

* * *

**Alice's Point of View**

The story of my "secret" relationship with Jasper was met by squeals from the girls and some snickering on Rose's part.

"At least he finally found a decent girl! I was starting to think he was gay," she said.

"Well he's not!" I said pointedly. "And you have proof now!"

"Yes, now I do. Alice, we may be becoming great friends and all but remember that he is my brother and I _do not _want to know about what goes on _behind closed doors_," she told me with a pointed look.

I shrugged. "Don't worry, we haven't gotten to that part yet," I replied.

"When you do, don't tell me. General is fine. Other than that, you're a great gal for him," she said, giving me a hug.

"Vicky?" I asked. I may have just met her, but we were fast friends already and I wanted and cared about her approval too.

"It just so . . . romantic," she answered, sounding surprised.

"You sound surprised," Bella commented.

She ran a hand through her hair and shrugged. "I just never thought he could be so . . . romantic! He's always such a geek at work with his tech speak and serious face," she replied.

We said our collective "oh's" before bursting into giggles again.

"I guess that leaves me as the single one!" Vicky announced. I put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, you'll find someone," I said. "I can feel it."

* * *

**Jasper's Point of View**

"Yeah! Jazzy got himself a woman!" Emmett hollered after I told them the news. I looked at Edward and I'm sure I had a terrible "please-don't-kill-me-I'm-too-young-to-die expression on my face.

He looked surprisingly . . . calm. Too calm? I couldn't be sure.

I swear I was going to kill myself for this but I had to know. "Edward?" I asked quietly.

He ran a hand through his hair and exhaled. "I was expecting this," he answered.

"You were?" I asked.

"Yes," he replied simply. "I saw the way she looked at you and figured it was only a matter of time."

I looked around nervously before landing my gaze at him but he gave me a smile.

"But if Emmett can accept me, then I know I can trust you," he said, clapping me on the back.

"I just want you to remember that if you hurt her, I'll have your ass mounted over the fireplace," he told me with a dark look in his eyes.

"Don't worry, Edward, I'm not going anywhere."

"And that's all I can count on," he said with a smile.

* * *

**Bella's Point of View**

Next Saturday

"We're here!" Emmett boomed from outside as I saw him waving at the camera. All of them were already here, in their respective cars. I guess they came together.

"Come in!" I said happily as greetings were exchanged.

"Hey, man!" Emmett said exchanging a "man hug" with Edward.

"Men," Rose and I muttered. We looked at each other and laughed.

We all sat down and Angela served sandwiches.

"FOOD!" Emmett yelled and grabbed the whole tray of sandwiches from Angela. We all tried to muffle our laughter as we watched Emmett eat.

"What?" he asked with a full mouth of food.

"Nothing, Emmett, just eat with your mouth shut!" Rose told him.

"Hey, is the mole coming?" Vicky asked.

"Oh yeah, he's on the way, I'll meet him outside," he announced, wiping his mouth with his sleeve and going out onto the porch.

We heard a car arrive a few minutes later and Emmett's voice as he talked to someone.

He opened the door and stepped in first.

"Okay, guys, he's here. One thing I want you to know is that he's not really straight . . ." Emmett started, trailing off.

"You mean he's gay?" Vicky asked. She had issues with gay people somehow, probably because her ex dumped her because he found more love in the male species.

"Shh, don't say that!" Emmett scolded half-heartedly. "He's sensitive, but he's the most trustworthy guy I know!" he said with conviction.

"Okay . . . bring him in then!" Vicky said. Emmett stepped out and pulled a man inside.

"Hello, all!" he said, waving at us.

"So, you're _not _gay?" Victoria asked.

"VICKY!" We said at the same time.

She raised her hands up. "What? I was just asking!"

**

* * *

And it ends there . . . well, this chapter does. The next update will be on . . .hmmm, probably next Wednesday, or earlier, if I get some love from all of you! **

**So please REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!! Please? **

**I really want to hear from you, any of your suggestions are welcome. I'd try to fit in those little theories or "WTF moments" you're all thinking of, so send them in! PM me or put it in a review! Now, GO! Please? You will? Yay! *happy dance* "Oh, um . . .ah, sorry, I'll . . . go now, bye!" **


	18. Chapter 18

**Hey there, everybody! Here's the next installment of Through Your Window! *applause* :) Some of you have guessed about who the mole is and if you were right, I told you that you were, so good for you guys! You may get confused at some part here so I suggest reading the EARLIER chapters . . . like, let's say . . . chapter 1. **

**By the way, thank you to all my loyal reviewers who reviewed for every chapter; and to those "lurking" around FF reading the story and finally got to review! Yay for you! **

**This is a short chapter, sorry. **

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 17

Insider

"_I'm NOT gay!"_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

"_You mean he's gay?" Vicky asked. She had issues with gay people somehow, probably because her ex dumped her because he found more love in the male species. _

"_Shh, don't say that!" Emmett scolded half-heartedly. "He's sensitive, but he's the most trustworthy guy I know!" he said with conviction._

"_Okay . . . bring him in then!" Vicky said. Emmett stepped out and pulled a man inside._

"_Hello, all!" he said, waving at us._

"_So, you're not gay?" Victoria asked. _

"_VICKY!" We said at the same time. _

_She raised her hands up. "What? I was just asking!" _

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

"Sensitive, Vicky, he's _sensitive!" _I told her through tightly gritted teeth as I spoke despite of my wide smile, pinching her in the arm.

"Well sorry!" she said to us and to the man as she rubbed her arm tenderly. He shook his head and shrugged.

"Before I introduce myself, I would like to say, for the record, that I'm NOT gay! I'm bi," he said, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. _It's good to see that he's so proud of it and not some closeted person that brings heartbreak once they admit that they're really g—whoa, Bella, too much soap operas there! _

Emmett cleared his throat and spoke up. "Guys, this is—"

"James? James Davis?" Edward said in surprise as he entered the living room. _James. _It was a fitting name, except for the low ponytail, I would think it was a very manly name for a very _manly _. . . guy? Well, yeah, I mean, he is _still _a guy, whether or not he was bi or anything . . . ok, I think it's best to shut up now—even in my thoughts.

James looked . . . surprised, to say the least. "Edward, hey there!" he said, walking over to Edward and tapping him on the shoulder.

We all looked confused as to _how _Edward and James knew each other.

"Okay . . . weird," Rosalie announced.

Emmett looked from James to Edward and back again, pointing to each of them. "You two . . . know each other?"

"Yeah," James said, amazed. "Edward and I go _way _back."

"We were college buddies," Edward explained. We all nodded in understanding.

James turned to Edward. "Hey, Ed, do you mind if we talk first . . . alone," he asked quietly. Edward gave a small nod and they excused themselves, going to the garden out back.

Alice giggled. "James, who would've thought?" she mused.

"You know each other too?" Rose asked.

She shrugged. "We met each other a few times, give or take," she replied. "I never knew he was gay, though," she added thoughtfully, probably thinking back to the times they've seen each other. "I actually thought he was cute too," she said with a giggle. Jasper scowled at that.

"Oh, Jazz, you know you're my number one man now, right?" she said reassuringly, a gentle hand on his arm. He relaxed and nodded, his scowl melting into a smile.

"Looks like someone's jealous," Rosalie whispered teasingly. We laughed quietly.

"What do you think those two are doing back there?" Vicky threw in with a sly glance. We all knew what she was getting to, it wasn't exactly something I was comfortable talking about, but Vicky was all about screwing the taboo topics and getting on to the nitty-gritty details. Sometimes I wonder about what we actually had in common.

Oh, right, she was a _great friend with a big heart, _of course . . .

"Edward's not gay, nothing to worry about," I answered promptly.

Rose snickered at me. "Of course _you _would know . . ." she said, trailing off.

"Shut up." I smacked Rosalie's arm and like a mature adult, she stuck her tongue out at me.

**

* * *

Edward's Point of View**

"What are you doing here?" I asked James as he looked at me.

He shrugged. "Emmett's a good friend who called in a favor. He explained Bella's situation and since I work at Black's company in the senior offices, I thought I could help out," he answered.

_Always the good guy. _

"So . . . are you and Tanya through?" he asked, changing the subject. "I mean, you have Bella now, right?" he added, gesturing in the general direction of the living room.

"Yeah, we're through. Honestly, I never liked her anyway," I confided to him.

His face showed a look of _relief? _What was that for?

"Why do you look so relieved?" I asked.

He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Well . . . you know I'm . . . bisexual, right?" he asked. I nodded, remembering when he came clean to me about it on our senior year in college after he got _really _plastered.

"You see I've kind of, well, I _was _having an affair with Tanya while you were still 'engaged'" he rushed out. It took a moment for my brain to process his words before the pieces fell into place—for this part of the puzzle, at least.

Why Tanya was so distant.

The man her dad talked about.

"You're the guy she met in Italy?" I asked, surprised.

"It was a business trip, I met her, and it went all out from there, but I never knew _she _was your fiancée! I just thought they had the same name! I never met her before, remember?" he answered.

I nodded. It made sense, not that I cared anymore anyway. "It doesn't matter now, because we're through," I told him.

He let out a deep sigh. "We' broke up too," he said quietly.

"Why?"

He looked embarrassed and sheepish to be saying whatever he was going to say next. "Well she wasn't exactly receptive to the idea of my . . . bisexuality," he replied.

Understanding dawned on me. 

_Of course, count on Tanya, cheater extraordinaire, to be a purist. _

"Oh, that's . . ." I trailed off, wondering how to say this appropriately and tactfully. "Sad," I finished lamely.

He looked down on the ground and nodded. "Yeah, it is, but if she can't accept me then she's not worth it, right?"

"Yeah, she's not."

"And that's why I'm here now," he said proudly. "To help you and make something from my life instead of being stepped and trampled on."

I patted his back. "Good for you."

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

James and Edward returned inside looking much chummier than moment before.

Vicky raised her eyebrows curiously at them. "I don't even wanna know," she muttered as she turned to Jasper who had the laptop set up on the dining table.

"Are we going to get planning now, or what?" she asked. We all huddled together near them on the table and craned our necks to get a good view of the map.

"Guys, I think James should explain," Emmett suggested. We nodded in agreement and James passed through, sitting next to Vicky.

Jasper typed something into the laptop and a map of the 20th floor of Jacob's office was displayed on the screen.

"Isn't that where you work, James?" Emmett asked, pointing to a small office a few doors away from Jacob's.

He nodded. "Yeah, I work there and I go to Jacob's office quite often so I guess I could . . . well, do whatever you need to me to do," he said with a shrug. "I'm sort of his . . . a, um, secretary?" he said quietly.

Vicky let out a low whistle. "_Guy _secretary, nice," she said sarcastically at James. He threw her a dirty look. _Ugh. VICKY!_

"What you need to do is simple . . . for now," Vicky said mysteriously, producing a small round object from Jasper's laptop bag.

"What's that?" Alice asked, peering at it.

Vicky raised it up proudly. "This is a small listening device. We're going to bug his office so that we could get some information and actually get things done. You can do that, right?" she asked. James nodded, annoyed. _Those two have some weird hate-hate relationship going on . . . _

She handed the one in her hand to James and got a small zip lock plastic bag with three more listening devices in it.

"How many times do you go to his office, James?" Vicky asked, looking reluctantly at James as James looked back at her with the same look on his face. _What is with these people? _

He shrugged. "It depends, but mostly around two to three times a day and sometimes more on busy days," he answered.

"That's good. When you go there, make it a point to stand in different parts in his office and _try _to hide this as inconspicuously as possible. _Make sure it's hidden_ _well_," she enunciated.

He nodded, holding out his hand as Vicky dropped the small bag into it.

"Now we're getting somewhere!" Emmett boomed happily from behind us, causing us to jump. We all laughed, it's true after all.

* * *

_A few days later . . ._

**James' Point of View**

"James, get over here," Jacob said over the intercom. I took a deep breath and grabbed one of the small listening devices from the small pouch in my desk drawer. I slid the small object into my pocket and kept my hand there, walking out the door and to the boss man's office.

I knocked on his door tentatively before coming in, I heard him abruptly end his conversation but I heard the tail end of it.

"_Yeah, I know, yes, yes, I know! Damnit! Yes, it'll be there at the warehouse, 7:00? I thought you said eight? What? It was changed? Damn. Yeah, fine, 7:00 at the warehouse, you better be there!" _

I heard him put the receiver back on its cradle before he called me in. "Come in, James," he said.

I shuffled into the room like I normally did, showing no signs of hearing his abruptly ended conversation. "You called for me, sir?" I asked.

He nodded. "Oh, yes. Uh, can you bring these contracts down and have them send it to Charlie Swan?" he asked.

"Of course, sir," I replied and I went over to the table, putting my fingers in my pocket and feeling for the listening device. Once I was close enough, I grabbed the contracts and stuck the tiny object on the underside of his table. He didn't notice a thing.

"Any deadline on when it should get there, sir?" I asked him. He looked up from the notepad he was writing on to look at me.

"Oh, uh, it should get there by Friday, at the latest," he replied. I nodded and walked out the door.

Walking back to my office, I took the time to look at the contract closely. There were a lot of clauses involved that somewhat limited Charlie's power over the company but an even share in stocks, bonds, profits and everything else, financially speaking. I set the contracts down on the table, grabbed my phone and dialed Emmett's number. He had to know about this.

"Hello?" a gruff voice answered on the other line.

"Em? It's me," I said quietly.

"Oh, James! What's up, man?"

I looked at the contracts and thought about how to say it with security cameras in the room. "Hey, can the gang meet on Friday?" I asked him.

"It depends, I'll ask, but I think they're all free then anyway. What's up?" he asked curiously.

"Nothing, just . . . make sure you have a highly skilled lawyer when you go over the contracts, okay?" I said.

"Um, sure, but why?"

"I'll tell you on Friday, but remember what I said," I told him.

"Okay, will do. Thanks for the tip, buddy. Bye!"

**

* * *

And that's chapter 17! I'll TRY to squeeze in an update on Saturday, but if I can't, the next one will be NEXT Saturday since I have school already (gosh!). So . . . there.**

**To all the people reading (and those lurkers out there *wink wink*) review! Please? Can we make it reach 200? YES WE CAN!! So let's go! Review! Please? C'mon! Go for it!**

**And also, leave your suggestions, I've been getting some already but I still want to hear more from you! **


	19. Chapter 19

**Look! In your computer screen! It's another update! Yay! :) And I reached 200 reviews! God, I LOVE you guys to bits! **

**Thank you to all my loyal reviewers and to everyone for reading this story. Giving your time to read this is really touching, really :) This is a short chapter, sorry. I haven't had time to get around to do some real writing since school's about to start and my mother has been harassing me to get myself together since it's no longer summer (it sucks)**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 18

A Hate-Hate Relationship

"_I hate you." "I hate you too."_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

James.

"_Hello?" a gruff voice answered on the other line._

"_Em? It's me," I said quietly. _

"_Oh, James! What's up, man?" _

_I looked at the contracts and thought about how to say it with security cameras in the room. "Hey, can the gang meet on Friday?" I asked him._

"_It depends, I'll ask, but I think they're all free then anyway. What's up?" he asked curiously._

"_Nothing, just . . . make sure you have a highly skilled lawyer when you go over the contracts, okay?" I said._

"_Um, sure, but why?"_

"_I'll tell you on Friday, but remember what I said," I told him._

"_Okay, will do. Thanks for the tip, buddy. Bye!" _

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

"Hello?" I said into the receiver.

"Hey, Bells! It's me!" Emmett boomed into the phone loudly, almost causing me to drop the creampuff I was eating onto Edward's expensive (and clean) couch. _Yeah, knowing me, that wouldn't end so well. _

"Em! Your voice scared the shit out of me!" I scolded, trying to hold my creampuff properly again to make sure it didn't fall.

He grunted. "You weren't in the middle of something . . . were you?" he asked, making sure he was talking to me in a G-rated environment.

"Don't worry, Em. I was just eating a creampuff, _which you almost made me drop!_" I answered, annoyed.

He didn't seem to care about scaring me though. "Ooh! Creampuffs! Man, I _love _those! Can you send some over here?" he asked, sounding so much like a little kid.

"Get your own creampuffs!" I told him.

"Aw, c'mon!" he whined.

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "Why did you call, Emmett?" I asked him.

That seemed to remind him that he had something to tell me. "Oh! James called. He put the first bug in and get this, Black handed him some contracts for dad. He went over them quickly and said they looked a little too limiting for my taste," he told me.

"So what can we do about it?" I asked.

"What we _will _do about it is get dad's best lawyer to look over it and include a little _persuasion _on my part," he said smugly.

"Emmett, what will I do without you?" I asked happily.

"Oh, I don't know, dear sister. What _will _you do without me?" he asked back in a dramatic tone.

"Ass," I muttered.

"You know it!" he yelled happily. "I have to go now. Tell Vicky the news and tell her I said hi!"

"Bye," I said before hanging up. I grabbed my cellphone and called Vicky.

* * *

"Where are we going?" I asked as Vicky dragged me along behind her downtown. I saw her pause and look across the street before I realized we were standing directly across Jacob's office building.

I put my hands up and slowly backed away, my back hitting the glass doors of the Waldorf Astoria. "Oh no, I am _not _going in there!" She waltzed forward and pulled me back towards her.

"Yes we are!" she said

"He'll recognize me!"

"You're wearing _the disguise!" _she argued, pointing to my glasses, braided hair and make-up.

I scoffed. "Right, because this disguise will work wonders on the whole population of the universe," I commented dryly. "Someone's bound to recognize me especially since most of them have gotten an eyeful of me during those stupid company banquets."

"Come _on!" _she whined. "You know I can't face . . . _James_," she said his name reluctantly.

"What is it with you and James?" I asked her, wondering about her instant hatred for the guy before pulling her into the Waldorf Astoria and leading her to a secluded section of the bar.

She buried her hands in her mass of red hair. "Ugh, _Bella, _you know I don't do well with . . . gay people," she said. "Or _people_ in general," she added. "That's why I joined the FBI!"

We quieted down when a waitress came over to take our drink orders.

"I'll have a blue margarita!" she announced enthusiastically, raising a hand in the air. The waitress nodded and turned to me. "Oh, nothing for me," I answered with a smile. The waitress sauntered off. And I turned to Vicky to continue our conversation, which was slowly going downhill.

"Vic, James isn't even gay and may I point out that the reason for your hatred for him was _one _ex-boyfriend, who just so happened to break up with you because he fell for that male masseuse back in Mexico," I told her.

"I happened to love him very much, you know, despite the fact that everyone kept saying we won't end up together," she stated. "And I thought he was actually going to propose when he took me to Cabo!" She quieted down when the waitress placed her blue margarita in front of her.

"I thought he really planned to marry you, awkwardness and all?" I asked, confused. _Seriously, it's not like she's _not _over him. . ._

She rolled her eyes. "He _did; _then he met . . . Antonio," she the masseuse's name with venom, her eyes narrowing into slits. _Ok, so she's NOT over him._

"Get over it, it was _four _years ago! You're twenty-eight years old and a woman of the world!" I told her encouragingly.

"A _single _woman of the world!" she replied, exasperated. "I mean, look at _you! _You have a hot guy that's totally and completely in love with you despite your odd back story and deranged ex-fiancé, even Rose and Alice have boyfriends! I guess I'm just destined to be alone," she said sadly, staring at her margarita, which was starting to look as blue as she was.

"You'll find someone, soon," I told her, gently rubbing her arm. I couldn't believe talking about James could lead up to us discussing what was probably the most embarrassing and heartbreaking moment of Vicky's life, I didn't really know _all _the details, just that it involved Mexico, a masseuse, her ex-boyfriend and her worst enemy who hated her guts for no particular reason.

"Just think about it, he'll be doing god-knows-what in Mexico, while you're here, making a great life for yourself! You'll find a man, I can feel it. Now, you have to get over your issues and _talk to James_—like civilized adults," I told her.

She glared at me. "Nice try, Dr. Phil, but that's not gonna work with me. I still don't like him," she said.

"You barely _know _the guy, all you know about him is that his name is James," I argued.

"And that he's gay," she added, taking a sip of her drink.

"He's not _gay, _he's bisexual," I pointed out, pulling the drink away from her mouth.

She raised her hands up in the air. "Same difference!"

"Hey girls! What's up?" Rose asked as she and Alice came to our table, their hair and nails looking shinier than usual.

"Alice? Rose? What are you two doing here?" I asked.

"Oh, Rose and I decided that some bonding time was in order! We had our hair done at the salon," Alice chirped happily. "Oh! And we had manicures!" she said, wiggling her fingers out for me to see.

"What's eating her?" Rose asked, pointing to Vicky who was sipping dejectedly at her margarita again.

I sighed. "The usual, her ex-boyfriend," I explained.

"Ooh! Do tell, what happened?" Alice asked, sitting down quickly and resting her chin on her palm, a look of pure eagerness on her face.

I turned to Vicky. "Can I tell her?" I asked.

She sighed. "Sure," she mumbled, "maybe she can give me non-Dr. Phil type of advice."

I rolled my eyes at her and told Alice the story starting from when we were _supposed _to talk to James (which, in reality, wasn't even necessary) to the story of Vicky's closeted gay ex-boyfriend who left her for a tanned, Mexican masseuse during their vacation in Cabo San Lucas.

She winced. "Ouch, that must hurt," she said sadly.

"Oh it did," Vicky replied, her voice low and menacing.

"Don't worry, Vicky! We'll fix your guy problems," Alice said confidently, standing up.

"And there's only one solution to a problem like this," Rose and I said simultaneously.

"SHOPPING!" Alice shouted enthusiastically. From all the days we've spent with Alice, we discovered that there really is just one natural cure for everything, and that is _retail therapy—_in Alice's book.

"I am NOT going shopping!" Vicky said defiantly. Crossing her arms and shaking her head furiously.

"It's either that or you talk to James," I threw in. She immediately stood up, left 10 dollars on the table and went over to Alice.

"Let's go," she said, dragging us along with her.

* * *

"I don't see how this is a bad thing," Rosalie whispered, being cautious about the volume of her voice since Vicky was just in a dressing room two feet away. She had agreed with Alice's previous statement about how James and Vicky would be "_just perfect" _for each other.

"She hates the guy's guts for no apparent reason," I pointed out to them.

"Bella, Bella, Bella," Alice said, shaking her head. "You said it yourself that you went there to talk to James even if you it wasn't that important or _urgent_. It just goes to show that maybe she sort of _likes _James," she said tentatively.

"Right," I scoffed, rolling my eyes.

"It's like first grade all over again," Rosalie said. "Except Vicky's the one using hate as a form of denial instead of the other way around," she explained.

"Sounds kind of twisted to me," I replied.

"Bella, it's not. Maybe she's just using this hate to channel her um . . . _desire _for James!" Alice said. _Desire? Ew. _

"Um, girls, can you help me out here?" Vicky yelled from the dressing room. "The zipper's stuck with the dress halfway through my head!"

We laughed quietly, making sure Vicky didn't hear us—it would just mortify her more. "You're all laughing right now, aren't you?" she asked dryly.

"Oh, no we're not!" Alice said, her voice rising in pitch. "We'll get you out of there in a jiffy!" We all stood up and headed for the dressing room.

**

* * *

And there you go! Chapter 18! The updates will get less frequent now, but I promise that I will make them longer, deal? **

**Please review and send me some love! I'd love to hear from you! Really, I do! Your reviews crack me up and so do your suggestions! So keep them coming!**

**Rozz: I love your Emmett moment!! Seriously, it's something I can picture Emmett doing . . . hmm, not a bad idea actually, mind if I use it? It could go with that other story I'm writing . . .*thinks deeply* **

**To all the lurkers, welcome! And thank you for reviewing! **


	20. Chapter 20

**Hello my lovelies! I'm back! Like I said before, the updates **_**may **_**(but I will really try to avoid this) come few and far between but since my birthday was a few days ago (yay!) I wrote this chapter for all of you! Consider it my present for all of you :)I was supposed to post it yesterday, but, alas, the document manager wouldn't cooperate. . . so sad.  
**

**So read on and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 19

Let the Good Times Roll

_Thank you, Zipper Incident!_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

"_Um, girls, can you help me out here?" Vicky yelled from the dressing room. "The zipper's stuck with the dress halfway through my head!" _

_We laughed quietly, making sure Vicky didn't hear us—it would just mortify her more. "You're all laughing right now, aren't you?" she asked dryly._

"_Oh, no we're not!" Alice said, her voice rising in pitch. "We'll get you out of there in a jiffy!" We all stood up and headed for the dressing room. _

* * *

"Good morning, friends!" Emmett boomed jovially as he barged through Edward's door, causing the walls to shake, that next weekend.

"Hello there, Emmett," we greeted him in chorus, sounding much like a psychiatric help group greeting a newbie than a group of friends.

"Hey . . . guys!" Rosalie panted as she caught up with Emmett behind the door.

"You look like you ran a marathon, sis," Jasper commented, eyeing Rosalie's panting form, her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath.

"Ha-ha," she laughed sarcastically with a roll of her eyes before straightening herself up and fixing her slightly windblown hair. "I was just trying to catch up with Big Bear here since he seems so damn _eager _to get here today because he wants to tell you all about something," she told us.

"Well, what's up?" Vicky asked from her spot on the couch where she was laying down comfortably before she swung herself up to a sitting position. Her newly straightened hair from the "zipper incident," as we liked to call it, swished behind her, the faint sunlight from the window casting on it and making it look like it was on fire. From the corner of my eye, I saw James cast a quick, wide-eyed glance at her, obviously seeing it for the first time before I looked at Alice who caught my eye and smirked—she saw it too.

I swear; I could practically feel Alice screaming: "thank you, zipper incident" in her head.

The _zipper incident _was actually quite . . . entertaining, except for the part where Vicky freaked out constantly about her "precious hair." You'd think that at the rate that she loved it, she'd actually care to _comb _it for once.

_

* * *

Flashback! A few days ago . . . _

"_Ok, Vicky, just . . . a few . . . more . . . tugs!" Rosalie heaved as we both struggled to pull Vicky out of the damned dress that was currently clinging onto her hair for dear life that it was getting more than pathetic—for a non-living thing, that is. I looked around for Alice and noticed for the first time that she was nowhere to be found, which was an easy task, considering that we were in a small dressing room and all. _

"_Shit!" Vicky cursed loudly as Rose pulled a little _too _hard.  
_

"_Sorry," she mumbled in apology as she tried to pull the zipper down again. Just then, Alice came back into the dressing room, a determined look on her face. _

"_Desperate times call for _desperate _measures," she said ominously as she lifted a pair of scissors from behind her back, opening and closing it to make a couple of snipping sounds for extra effect._

"_Guys?" Vicky said, her voice muffled by the stifling fabric of the dress. "What are you doing out there? And why the hell do I hear the sound of SCISSORS?" she asked loudly, writhing and squirming in a desperate attempt to free herself from the restraining piece of fabric before Alice's scissors could. My hands shot out to still her movements. The last thing that we needed was for her to get hurt. _

"_Calm down, Vicky," Alice said soothingly. "Just let me get a couple of snips in there and you'll be free!"_

"_NO!" she protested loudly, shaking her head defiantly, making the hem of her dress to swing around and hit our faces._

"_Ugh, Vicky, quit your whining and let Alice cut it or I swear on my _brand new_ Gucci bag that _I'LL DO IT MYSELF!" _Rose threatened. Vicky stopped moving and stood still. We all did, awaiting her answer. _

"_Fine," she huffed reluctantly, her arms falling to her sides as a sign of defeat. "But ALICE will do it," she added firmly.  
_

"_Don't worry," Alice said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I promise to be careful."_

_A couple of snips and a few strands of hair later, Vicky was free from the dress and could breathe properly again. _

"_Thank God!" she announced in relief. "AIR, glorious air!"_

"_Thank you, Alice," she said, walking over to her to give her a hug. It wasn't that hard, since we were all crammed together in the small dressing room anyway._

"_I'm surprised we haven't attracted a saleslady's attention yet," Rose mused._

"_That's a good thing," Vicky told her, slipping on her jeans and shirt. "The less people to witness my embarrassment, the better," she said, walking out of the cramped dressing room._

"_Vicky, have you _ever _considered getting your hair done?" Alice asked her._

_She shook her head. "No way, I like my hair _just fine,_" she answered in a tone that said 'close the topic.'_

"_But you would look SO MUCH better!" Alice gushed, unwilling to back down. "Plus . . .," she trailed off, looking sheepish all of a sudden before pointing to a spot on the side of her head. Vicky looked at her, a confused look on her face, before touching that spot on her own head. She turned around to the three way mirror behind her and screamed bloody murder._

"_MY HAIR!" Her hands were on the now more . . . _uneven _side of her head. _

"_See what I mean?" Alice asked timidly. Vicky turned to her, a murderous look on her face. _

"_Fix it, Pixie!" she demanded, her hands on Alice's shoulders. "I thought you said you'd be careful!" _

"_Ok, ok, I'll fix it," Alice said. "And I _was _careful; I didn't know it would end up _that _way!" _

"_Trust me, Vic, if _I _did it, it would look _so _much worse," Rosalie threw in. _

"_You better fix it," she mumbled before grabbing a scarf from one of the shopping bags and cutting off the tag, tying it around the side of her head before slipping on a pair of huge shades. _

"_You look ridiculous," I said._

_She shrugged. "Better this than an uneven hairdo," she retorted. _

_

* * *

We found ourselves at the salon a few minutes later with Vicky on the seat while Alice talked to her stylist Pierre in hushed tones. Rose was flipping through an issue of Cosmo while I texted Edward._

_E,_

_Bored out of my mind. Alice just asked for a death wish a few minutes ago._

_~B_

_A few minutes later, my phone started to vibrate; I pulled it from my pocket and read the text._

_B,_

_What did she do this time?_

_-E_

_I laughed at his brotherly tone before typing in a reply._

_E,_

_You don't wanna know. Talk to you later, Vicky's getting her hair done—DON'T ASK._

_Love you._

_~B_

_I closed my phone just in time to see Vicky returning to the salon chair, her hair newly shampooed and conditioned with what I guessed was an excessive amount of hair care products._

_We watched Pierre trim her hair, looking at the wet clumps that fell to the floor. Vicky was busy reading a magazine, completely ignorant to the amount of hair being chopped off. After the trim, a masseuse came in and started massaging her shoulders._

Wow, Alice really pulled all the stops this time.

_We could see her eyes slowly drifting shut before she started snoring lightly. Pierre came back with some more hair care products before whispering to Alice: "let the hair straightening process begin!"_

_I stared at Alice wide-eyed and all she did was smile at me._

"_You're asking for a very brutal death," Rose said in a monotone, beating me to it._

_She shrugged calmly. "It would be _so _much better for her and her self-confidence. Don't worry about me, I can handle it," she said smugly. _

_Rose and I threw her concerned looks before turning to do other things, nervously waiting for the time when she woke up._

"_And viola!" Pierre said happily, as Vicky opened her eyes to see her newly dried and _newly straightened _hair._

"_Oh. My. God." she breathed, throwing her hands up to her hair.  
_

"_Do you . . . like it?" Alice asked nervously as Pierre mirrored her expression. We all stared at her, bracing ourselves for the screaming (and the throwing, and of course, the kicking).  
_

_But it never came._

_In its place, was loud squealing; _Vicky, _our Vicky, _squealed.

_There must be something in that hair treatment that seeped into her brain. _

"_Alice, I LOVE it!" she said happily. We watched slack-jawed as she started running her fingers through her shiny hair, flipping it over her shoulder repeatedly.  
_

"_Wow," I finally managed to say. "I was expecting you to . . . scream, or something," I said honestly. _

_She shrugged. "So was I, but then . . . whoa," she said, wide-eyed at her reflection. Her hair fell down in beautiful layers up to the middle of her back. It was so . . . well . . . _beautiful _and just so Vicky._

"_So you like it?" Alice asked, unsure._

_She smiled widely. "Of course I do, thank you again, Alice, for opening my eyes to how I _should _look" she said, standing up and hugging her again. _

"_No problem!" Alice replied and hugged her fiercely. _

_That night, when we got back Alice smiled smugly at Rose and I. "Told ya," she said smugly. _

"_Alright, you were right and we were wrong, let it go," Rose whined._

"_Ok!" she said happily before closing her window and driving off. _

_End of flashback._

* * *

"Well?" Rose asked Emmett, her hands on her hips. "What's your _great news_?"

Emmett looked at us eagerly. "Well, I talked to dad and he said that he'll have his lawyers look over Black's contract and make the necessary arrangements. He said it would take . . . oh, around 3 MONTHS!" he said happily, proud that he was able to buy us some time to plan. We _really _needed to chill.

"That's great, Em!" I said, running over to give him a big hug.

"I know," he said smugly. "And do you know what else?" he asked.

"What?" we all asked back.

"Dad said that we can use the family cabin in Georgia for a two week vacation!" he said eagerly. I remembered that! The cabin was awesome, it was just always my parents and Emmett and I. No help, no sevants, _just us. _I missed those moments. _And I missed mom and dad . . . _

A chorus of approvals came from the group.

"What a great idea," Edward said. "We need to relax."

"Amen!" Alice threw in from her spot on Jasper's lap.

They all looked at me. This was mostly my decision, after all.

I shrugged and smiled. "Why the hell not?" I said happily as they cheered. It's not like anything odd will happen while we're there or while we're gone. Right?

* * *

**So there! Pass or fail? Tell me your thoughts! I'd love to hear from you! Give me your suggestions and your comments. Please REVIEW! Please? :) I will try my very best to update next week. I'm not making any promises but I will TRY.**

**To the lurkers: don't be shy, review! **

**To my loyal readers and reviewers: thank you, thank you, thank you! You are all AWESOME! Thank you for reviewing and sending me all your love!*hugs*  
**


	21. Chapter 21

**Hey there everyone! It's another update! I told you I wouldn't let you down! I know that the last chapter was more like a filler but I really needed to get it out before getting down to business. :) It's been a seriously long time that even **_**I'm **_**annoyed at myself right now. It's just that we had no class for a week and half—and instead given these ridiculous home-study schedules and homework up to our eyeballs. **

**Thank you for all your responses, they really brighten up my day (and seriously, it's raining so much right now that I need some serious 'day brightening') And also, thank you to all the loyal readers who still stick by me! I promise that this chapter's quite long :)**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 20

Getting Down to Business

"_Indoor voice, Emmett!"

* * *

_

"_Dad said that we can use the family cabin in Georgia for a two week vacation!" he said eagerly. I remembered that! The cabin was awesome, it was just always my parents and Emmett and I. No help, no servants, just us. I missed those moments._

_A chorus of approvals came from the group. _

"_What a great idea," Edward said. "We need to relax."_

"_Amen!" Alice threw in from her spot on Jasper's lap. _

_They all looked at me. This was mostly my decision, after all._

_I shrugged and smiled. "Why the hell not?" I said happily as they cheered. _

_

* * *

Day 1:_

The 13 hour drive to the cabin was quite uneventful but not boring. I rode with Edward while Rose and Emmett took the Jeep with Alice, Jasper. James and Vicky took Alice's Porsche. 

_I really hope they weren't strangling each other to death right now._

We met up for a quick rest stop at the gas station after reaching the 5-hour mark. It was now 10:30 am and we had 8 more hours to go. I felt thoroughly refreshed after sleeping for the past three hours to make up for the lack of sleep that I got from waking up at 5 am in the morning. Edward, on the other hand, looked absolutely groggy and sleep-deprived.

"Are you okay?" I asked him, caressing his cheek and running my fingers lightly over the faint purple bruising forming under his eyes. He nodded slowly, yawned and ran his hand over his face.

I frowned and crossed my arms. "You are _not _okay," I told him. "You know what? I'll drive," I declared as I fished the keys out of his pocket.

That seemed to wake him up because before I knew it, he lifted me by the waist, causing me to squeal.

"EDWARD!" I said, trying to pry his strong arms off of me.

"You aren't driving, love, and that's final," Edward whispered lowly in my ear as I felt him take the keys from my loosened fingers. I shivered lightly and felt the vibrations from his chuckles behind me—he felt it too.

_Damn it, and there I thought I was being subtle._

I sighed and he put me down before I turned back to him and crossed my arms with a pout. "I want to drive!" I whined, fishing the keys out of his hand again.

He kissed me lightly on the lips before plucking the keys out of my fingers. "I'm driving," he said.

I grabbed it again. "No, you will not! You're tired and probably as sleepy as hell from all the overtime you've been pulling off to go to this trip!" I argued.

"But Bella . . ." he started. I held up a hand to silence him.

"Look, if you want to stay up so badly, why don't you let me drive _now _and we can stay up _later _doing more . . . _interesting _things," I purred in his ear. _God, seducing my boyfriend in a gas station parking lot, how pathetic am I? _

I leaned back and looked up at him. He looked dazed and disoriented, which was the _perfect _opportunity to snatch the car keys back. I eased my hand into his pocket and fished them out once more.

"I'm holding you to that promise, Isabella Swan," he said.

"Don't worry," I said, smiling smugly at him before winking. "I don't intend on breaking it." And with that, I walked off to Emmett's Jeep which just zoomed in to the parking lot.

* * *

"Bella, is there a mall near the cabin?" Alice asked as she stirred her espresso absently, probably thinking about the things she would buy if there _was _a mall—which, there wasn't.

"Sorry to pop your happy bubble, Aly, but we will be in the woods, in a cabin," Rosalie chimed in—stating the obvious.

Alice looked absolutely crestfallen and sighed. "Oh well, it was worth knowing that," she said. "I may just go into withdrawal during this vacation."

"Don't say that, Alice," I told her. "The cabin has a pool and we have a closet full of Emmett's board games. I'm sure that'll be _more _than enough to keep us entertained."

Rosalie scoffed. "Emmett . . . board games?" she asked, holding back her laughter.

I smiled. "Yeah! We have a _ton _of board games. We have The Game of Life, Risk, Monopoly, Clue, Scrabble, Taboo, Pictionary . . ." I said, trailing off as I tried to remember the others.

I didn't get that far before I heard Rosalie burst into loud laughter. "_Risk? _Emmett plays _Risk_?" she asked incredulously.

"Well . . . no, _he _doesn't. I do, and so do my parents. He just likes to watch us play since he sucks," I said with a laugh.

"I knew it," she replied, rolling her eyes.

It must've taken Alice to process my comment about a pool because she finally spoke up. "Wait!" she said, raising her hands out in front of her. "You have a _pool_?" she asked again.

I shrugged. "Yeah, we do."

"I thought you owned a _cabin_?" she asked.

"With a pool," I added cheerily. _Actually it was a heated pool but they didn't need to know that--yet. _

"Well in that case," she said, thinking deeply before visibly brightening up. "Thank goodness I brought a bikini!" she said happily. Rose and I laughed at her instant recovery.

* * *

  
"Oh. My. God." I think I just saw Alice's jaw drop after she said that. We were currently standing in front of the family cabin and by _cabin_, I meant the loosest interpretation of _cabin _as possible.

"I thought you said we'll stay in a _cabin_?" Rose asked, taking in the two-story cabin nestled up the hill. I had to admit, it was funny watching their reactions since it was their first time here.

"Well what are you waiting for?" Emmett asked, climbing up the first few steps. "Let's go!"

They all followed, Emmett with me trailing behind them. He put the key in the lock and slowly opened the door, drawing out the suspense.

"It's dark inside, Emmett," Vicky commented.

"Yeah, I don't see anything in there," James added. Vicky rolled her eyes upon hearing James' voice.

Emmett flicked the switch on and the front hall was flooded with light. The moment the room was illuminated, gasps were elicited from the others. Emmett and I looked at each other and laughed softly at their reactions.

"See something you like?" Emmett asked smugly.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!" Alice squealed at an impossible high pitch, causing all of us to cover our ears. "Your cabin is _gorgeous!_" she gushed, her head turning from wall to wall before proceeding to touch and poke all of the furniture on her way in. We followed her inside with Rosalie staring slack-jawed at the expanse of the _cabin_. _Why haven't we ever brought Rose here yet?_

Well, it wasn't _exactly _a cabin, I mean, my definition of cabin would be a tiny bungalow off the wood trail. Based on their reactions, we shared the same opinion.

"It's beautiful, love," Edward murmured close to my ear. I smiled and turned to him.

"Well it's good that you think that," I replied. "Because for the next two weeks, it's going to be you, me and this cabin," I finished before throwing a glance at everyone else who was ogling the living room and Emmett's stellar entertainment system. "Oh, and those freaks," I laughed, pointing my thumb at them.

"Hey! We are not freaks! We are merely uh . . ." Alice trailed off, thinking of an appropriate word. "_Eager!" _she finished happily before picking up one of my mom's fashion magazines on the coffee table.

"Who wants a house tour?" Emmett boomed as he entered the living room.

Six hands went up simultaneously before they all followed Emmett up to the second floor.

* * *

"Alright, guys," I announced, looking at their forms currently sprawled on the couch. They didn't respond.

I tried a different approach. "Do any of you want to know your rooms or would you rather sleep out in the cold?" I asked, hands on my hips with a no-nonsense expression on my face. I did not want any arguments from them when they didn't know where to sleep later.

That got their attention.

"So how will it be, Bells?" Emmett asked from the corner. "We have four bedrooms," he said.

"Couples can share!" Rose piped in.

A loud "NO!" came from Vicky and James. We all turned towards them.

Rose huffed. "Right . . . _you _can't share because you just can't get the stupid hate-hate foreplay over with!"

"Hey, we do not have a _thing_," Vicky said, disgusted.

"Hell yeah," James added.

"Shut up," Vicky said in a clipped tone.

James raised his hands up, deciding to be the better man in this argument. "Shutting up . . ."

"Ok," Alice said, standing up—ready to take charge. "Since James and Vicky here won't share, how about the boys split up two rooms and we take the other two?" she suggested.

"Alright," Rose agreed. "It's not like we'll be sticking to those arrangements anyway," she muttered.

"So, the boys can take the rooms on the left side of the second floor and we'll take the right," I said.

"And we meet back here in half an hour for pizza!" Emmett threw in.

"Pizza?" Edward asked.

Emmett shrugged. "We may be in a cabin, but we are not in the middle of nowhere." He trailed off, looking out the window. "There's a pizza place around the corner," he said with a smirk. We laughed before collecting our bags and heading to our rooms.

* * *

"So how will we arrange ourselves?" Rose asked, looking at our bags lined next to each other in the hall.

"Who do you want to room with, Vicky?" Alice asked her.

She shrugged. "I'm good with anyone."

"I'll room with Vicky," I said. "That way. you and Rose can go canoodle with your men without leaving Vicky high and dry." I raised and eyebrow at them and they giggled. I was right—spot on.

"No problem, Bells, Aly and I will just head over to our rooms here and unpack and we'll meet you downstairs for pizza," Rose said.

* * *

"Ok, spill!" I demanded as Vicky plopped down on the bed. I towered over her and made the most convincing "no arguments" expression I could out of my face.

"Spill what?" she asked innocently. I wasn't _normally _the type of girl to ask for details like this but . . . I could _see _it already! I could feel the um . . . tension? Yeah! I could feel the tension bubbling between those two! I knew there was something there!

_God! Now I sound like Alice! I've been hanging out with her too much lately. . . _

"There's nothing to spill," she said nonchalantly.

"Yes there is," I replied stubbornly. Vicky rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, Bella! You're not pulling this shit on me now, are you?"

"Vicky . . ." I said, sounding much like a mom.

"There's nothing to sa—" she got interrupted by a knock on the door. "Oh thank God," I heard her breathe as I went to answer it.

"Don't think this is over!" I threatened.

She smirked. "Sure Bella, whatever you say." Sarcasm was really becoming for a person like Vicky despite the fact that it pissed me off like nothing else could—and she knew it.

I rolled my eyes at her tactics and opened the door.

"Hello there, Beautiful." Edward was beaming at me from the doorway.

"Hey," I said softly giving him a light peck on the lips.

"Guys! Cut the PDA moment!" Vicky yelled from the closet.

"Well hello to you too, Vicky," Edward greeted.

"Hello!" she said, her voice slightly muffled as she dug through her bag.

"Want to take a walk with me?" he asked. I threw a glance at my bags. _I guess I could pack later. . . _

_**You guess? You SHOULD pack later! Hello? Adonis standing next to you!**_

_Right, I WILL pack LATER. . ._

I smiled at him. "Let's go!"

* * *

"You know, I feel like I could learn so much about you here," Edward said as he stared up at the trees surrounding us.

I looked at him. "Why's that?"

"It's because . . . you know, we're finally here, away from the stress, even if it's just for a while. Plus, we're in a place that I know is very dear to your heart." He gave me a meaningful smile.

"So apart from knowing almost everything about me . . . what do you want to know?" I asked coyly.

"Hmm . . . any embarrassing stories you'd like to share?" he asked, his voice smooth as velvet as he leaned closer, effectively disorienting me.

I blinked profusely. "Huh . . . what?" I asked in a daze.

He snickered. "I said, any embarrassing stories?"

Once it registered, I narrowed my eyes at him. "Not. A. Chance." I enunciated every word as I watched his face fall.

"Please?" He pleaded, unleashing the full power of his emerald eyes on me. I had to admit, I was a little peeved that I could still be dazzled by them and that I hadn't created some weird immunity for them.

Not that I minded. I kissed his pout away and kept walking.

"What about you? Any stories I should know?" I asked.

"Not telling," he said, chuckling.

"HEY LOVEBIRDS!!! I'm ordering pizza so get your asses over here!" Emmett boomed from the doorway and I swear I could see birds fly up into the sky when he did that.

"God, Emmett, indoor voice," I mumbled.

Edward laughed. "He was outside, you can't blame him."

I smacked his shoulder. "Ouch! What?" He had this adorable confused expression on his face.

"Ugh, just shut up," I said, rolling my eyes and laughing as we treaded back inside.

* * *

"So that's Pepperoni and Sausages, one with anchovies, a Hawaiian and one of those pizzas with everything on it!" Emmett elaborated as he grabbed the keys to his truck.

Rosalie scoffed. "Right, and that's only the ones for _you_."

"Ugh, fine . . . what do you guys want?" he asked us reluctantly. It must have been a painful feat.

"Just double the order," Alice said. We all nodded.

"Alright then! See you in a few!" And with that, he went outside and left to buy pizza.

"What do we do now?" Jasper asked.

"Ooh! How about a movie?" Alice danced over to the TV and opened the small cabinet underneath. She leafed through the massive collection of DVDs before picking five and holding them up to us.

One of them was that vampire movie that came out a few months ago. I never really understood Emmett's fascination for it—he had a copy of it back at home too.

"I don't really feel like watching a movie," Vicky said, eyeing the titles.

Alice sighed, looking at her selection. "You're right, I'm not that into watching, now that I think about it."

"How about a board game?" Jasper asked.

"Sounds good," I replied, walking over to the game closet and opening it. I was overflowing from all of Emmett's board games.

"Ok, we've got Scrabble, Game of Life, Monopoly in three different editions and a bunch of other things."

"Scrabble," they all said. I tiptoed and eased the box out carefully, knowing well that one false move could cause all the boxes to fall on me.

After successfully extracting it from the pile, I walked back to them to find them all sitting down on the floor. I plopped down between Rose and Edward as Jasper set-up the game.

* * *

Five minutes later, we were about to start the game.

"Geez, Jasper, OCD much?" Vicky commented as she saw how long it took Jasper to set-up.

"Everything must be done accordingly," he retorted, holding up the rule book in one hand and the score sheets on the other.

"Like I said, OCD," Vicky sang.

"Let's just get this over with!" Rose grabbed the bag and drew out seven tiles before passing it around to everyone else.

James went first after drawing the letter A and the game started.

"S-O-U-N-D," he spelled as he put the letters down on the board.

"Are we in first grade again, James?" Vicky asked.

"Shut up, Vicky," he retorted before drawing more tiles from the green bag. I looked at the board.

"Sound," I said before furrowing my eyebrows.

"What's wrong?" Edward asked; his hand immediately on my forearm.

I shook my head. "James, what are we going to do about the listening devices you planted in Jake's office?" I asked, suddenly panicking at realization on the flaw of this vacation.

Jasper smiled. "Don't worry, Bella," he soothed. "It's all being recorded and we can access them tomorrow morning," he said with a smile.

"You think of everything, don't you?" I asked.

He puffed out his chest. "Well, OCD _is _good for something," he said, throwing a glance at Vicky who rolled her eyes before Alice pecked him on the cheek.

* * *

  
"I bring sustenance!" Emmett yelled as he barged back into the cabin.

"INDOOR VOICE, EMMETT!" Rosalie scolded.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly as he put down a _lot _of pizzas.

"Something tells me that's not the only thing we ordered," Edward said, eyeing the boxes warily.

"Don't worry dear old brother of mine, if we can't finish it, Emmett here can do it!" Alice chirped.

* * *

_Day 2:_

After breakfast, Jasper had his laptop propped up on the coffee table as he opened the sound files from Jacob's office.

"I got it!" he yelled triumphantly.

"Alright!" Emmett said, rubbing his hands together as he walked over to Jasper, resting his hand over the seat next to him.

"Play it already!" Alice said impatiently.

"Okay. . .," Jasper trailed off, opening the very first file from the day that James left the listening device.

Suddenly, sound filled the room from the speakers on the laptop. Everyone listened closely as the sound of opening doors, ringing phones and murmuring filled the room.

"Can you fast forward it?" Vicky asked. "I'm not really into the idea of listening to how many hours of office . . ."

"Sure," he replied, fast forwarding it until we heard voices gradually getting louder. It was a man and a woman.

"It's Jake and Leah," I said, listening closely.

"_. . . are you sure?" _Leah asked.

"_Of course I am, baby," _Jake replied and I cringed at his tone.

"_Do you really think they'll give in to this one?" _she asked. This one? Which one? _What are they planning? _

"_They will, I KNOW it," _he reiterated. _"Now come here,_" he said.

There was silence, then a slight crashing noise before we heard . . . oh God, was that _moaning? _

"FAST FORWARD IT JASPER!" Alice said.

"What? NO! This is gold," Emmett said eagerly.

"EMMETT!" We all yelled.

He raised his hands up and moved back. I watched in amusement over the rim of my coffee cup. "Alright! Fast forward it, dude."

"I wonder how much of that we'll hear?" Rose mused.

"Ugh, Rose, must you be so crass?" I asked her.

She shrugged and raised an eyebrow at me. "What? I don't hear _you _complaining!"

"Let's just forget _all _about it . . ." Vicky said before we resumed listening.

* * *

**Whew! And now that this baby's done . . . yay! Eleven pages later and the chapter finished! Expect more long ones soon! I can't promise frequent updates since apparently, our educators are trying death-by-homework, so if I'm still alive, I'll make sure to update more :)**

**Pass or fail? Please review! I hope you're all still there! PM or review in your suggestions of things to come! You know your ideas can add up to the drama! **

**Please and thank you! I'll see you all soon!  
**


	22. Chapter 22

**Hello there everybody! It's another update. I know, I know, it's been FOREVER (a month actually) since I wrote the last chapter but I had exams and school so please bear with me *smiles***

**Thank you to all the loyal readers and reviewers who have continued to encourage me to keep on writing. I will try my very best to update sooner after this.**

**Special thanks to balletgirl, you're awesome! ;) **

**Please read and review!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 21

Stormy Nights

"_I have a thick technical manual and I'm not afraid to use it!"_

_

* * *

Previously . . . _

"_Ugh, Rose, must you be so crass?" I asked her._

_She shrugged and raised an eyebrow at me. "What? I don't hear you complaining!" _

"_Let's just forget all about it . . ." Vicky said before we resumed listening. _

* * *

**BPOV**

"I'm bored," Alice said as she floated lazily around the pool in a little inflatable lounger that we found in the storage closet.

"We've only been here for 2 days, Alice," Rose said as she sipped her soda.

She looked up from the issue of Cosmopolitan that she was reading. "So? I need to channel my inner shopper already!"

"I thought this was about 'getting away from it all'?" I asked her.

She just shrugged and continued staring longingly at the clothes in the magazine. I looked at Vicky and she gave me a "what-do-you-think-I'm-supposed-to-do" look. I sighed before putting on my goggles. I was poised to start a dive—the only thing I can do gracefully—before the back door opened with a loud _thud. _

"CANNONBALL!" Emmett yelled as he careened into the pool, followed by the rest of the boys.

"Holy shit!" Vicky exclaimed as the water hit her full force on her spot on the loungers.

"EMMETT!" Rose yelled simultaneously as she fell into the water, pulling Alice's little lounger down with her.

I got drenched—and I didn't even hit the water yet. Thanks to my goggles, I was able to witness the whole thing. I removed them and rubbed my eyes, removing my hands afterwards just in time to see Rose jump Emmett and watch them both fall into the pool. Alice was climbing out slowly, dragging her now, soaking wet magazine and sun hat, while she glared daggers at Jasper. Vicky went back to being nonchalant, ignoring James who was swimming around lazily.

Finally, I spotted Edward. He was at the far end of the pool, his back to me—giving me enough time to ogle his perfectly muscled back, watching the water flow down each muscular crevice, making their way back to the water. His hair—oh, his hair! It was a darker shade of bronze, sticking to the sides of his head before he ran his hand through it, causing it to stand up at odd angles again. I sighed internally and walked over to join him.

"Hey there," I said quietly. He looked at me, eyes wide, like a deer in headlights.

I answered his unspoken question. "I'm not mad," I said, slipping down into the water to join him.

"You're not?" he asked incredulously as he wrapped his arms around me snugly and stared at the fight-fest currently going on with Emmett and Rose at the other end of the pool.

I shook my head. "I'm not," I repeated quietly before slapping his chest. "But you're pretty damn lucky that I wasn't in the water yet," I finished. He didn't flinch; he just threw me that crooked grin.

"Hey, guys! Let's play chicken!" Emmett announced loudly. A chorus of approvals came from the others while Vicky let out a big, fat, "hell no"

"Why not?" I heard Alice ask as I drew closer to them, her lips slipping into a pout.

"Because . . ." she drew out. "I will not get on any of your shoulders, especially not James'!" she yelled, pointing at him while he looked back at her in confusion.

Rose smirked. "No one said you had to go on _James' _back. For all you know we could play by gender!"

"Which will be totally unfair," Vicky replied.

"So are you implying that you _want _to go on James' back?" Rose asked quietly, looking at James who was talking to Jasper.

"Ugh! Enough! Fine, I'll join you," Vicky said, exasperated.

"Alright then," Rose replied, satisfied.

"Awesome!" Emmett announced. "Ok, now we split into teams!"

"Let's draw straws!" James suggested.

"Okay then," Emmett said, making a move to get out of the pool to grab some straws from the mini bar inside.

"I'll do it!" Jasper volunteered. "It has to be done _properly_," he said, throwing a glance at Emmett, knowing so well that he'll try to cheat or something. Seriously, that man could find a way to cheat in rock-paper-scissors.

"He's just anal," Emmett muttered.

"I heard that!" Jasper yelled. Moments later, he came back, shaking 2 small browns bags.

"Ok, everyone, now, we draw straws. They're all in different colors, a bag for the guys and a bag for the girls. The straws that match will tell you who your teammate is. Got it?" he asked. We all nodded.

He opened the bag and asked all of us to look away while getting our straw. We didn't show them to anyone yet—Jasper was all about the suspense.

When my turn came, I slipped my hand into the bag and grabbed the last straw, taking a peek at it before covering it with my hand.

"Alright then, guys, show your straws!" Jasper announced as we all raised our straws up in the air. _This felt like a child's game. _

I looked at the guys' hands, looking for a straw that matched mine. Finally, my gaze landed on one, also holding a green straw. I looked down at the person's face and saw Edward grinning at me. _Who's lucky? I am!_

Alice had a pink straw which matched Emmett's, to which he grumbled: "pink is _so _gay!"

"I heard that," Alice whispered as she poked his bicep.

Jazz and Rose got matching blue straws and they simultaneously grinned at each other.

"That is so unfair! They have like. . . a _twin thing _going on!" Emmett whined.

"Oh, quit your whining big bear!" Rose chided.

I looked at Vicky who was staring at her yellow straw in disgust then looking back at James. Come to think of it, I didn't know what she was looking disgustedly at, the straw or James.

I was voting for the latter.

"Let's get this party started!" Emmett hollered as he swooped Alice up over his shoulders. Alice swung her arms around excitedly before pointing to Jasper and Rose. "We're taking you on first!" she declared.

"Oh it's on, Pixie!" Rose said, her voice suddenly turning into that competitive tone I knew so well. Emmett jumped into the pool with Alice holding on to his biceps for support while Rose stood on one of the steps before hopping up on Jasper's shoulders.

"Alright everyone, you know the rules," Edward said, leaning down near the edge of the pool. "No foul play, Emmett, I'm talking about you," he said, as Emmett threw me a dirty look. I just playfully stuck my tongue out at him before beckoning him to listen to Edward. "The first girl to get pushed off loses. And remember, you can only use your hands!" He straightened up and walked back to my side.

The two pairs looked at each other. Jasper and Rose were giving each other signals while Alice whispered something in Emmett's ear from her precarious position on his shoulders. They faced each other simultaneously before looking at Edward, waiting for him to give the signal.

"Um . . . go?" he said and suddenly, the pushing started. Emmett and Jasper had intense looks of concentration on their faces as the girls pushed and heaved. Alice suddenly leaned back, flexing backwards at a scary angle before propelling herself forward and pushing Rose off Jasper's shoulders.

"AAAH!" Rose screamed before she fell into the pool. A chorus of chuckles followed soon after.

Edward and I went down next and we met a very drenched and pissed off looking Rose who was squeezing water from her hair before throwing a nasty look.

Let's just say that the next round ended up similarly to the first, except this time, all it took was a light push on my shoulder to send me toppling down into the water.

I got out of the pool and looked at Vicky who dramatically rolled her eyes and heaved a sigh before pulling James along with her. She adjusted her one-piece swimsuit before getting on his shoulders.

"You are _so _paying for this, Bella Swan," she said through gritted teeth as James walked them over to the middle of the pool and facing a very smug-looking Alice and Emmett.

"Bring it on!" Emmett said confidently as they all straightened up. Vicky twisted her neck and cracked her knuckles before stretching her arms out in front of her, her hands touching Alice's.

"And go!" Jasper yelled. They started to push again, and the looks of concentration returned. Through the insane pushing, I saw Vicky slip her hand up higher on Alice's arm before grabbing her bicep and pushing her backwards, causing Alice to let out a high-pitched scream.

We all applauded from the side of the pool as Vicky straightened up again and inspected her arms.

"Victory, thy name is Victoria!" she declared happily.

"Hey, doesn't Victoria _mean _victory?" James asked from underneath her.

She looked down at him and glared. "Oh shut it." She smacked him on the side of his head before diving backwards into the pool.

She went back up after a few seconds and wiped her face, looking at a very defeated Emmett. "Now that that's over, I'm going inside." And with that, she grabbed her towel and went back into the cabin.

"Rematch Vicky! I'm telling you! REMATCH!" Emmett yelled from behind her.

"Whatever!" Was her amused reply.

_That night:_

"I want to go out," Rose announced as she flipped through the channels absentmindedly.

"I know just the place!" Emmett said as he got up from the floor. "Let's go to that diner near the city and maybe do some clubbing!"

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Alice said as she entered the living room.

Vicky rolled her eyes. "Alice, any excuse to dress up is okay with you," she pointed out.

Alice shrugged. "Well, that _is _true!"

I turned to Vicky. "Are you coming?" I asked.

She shook her head. "No thank you," she replied adamantly. "After playing chicken, I am exhausted so I would just rather stay here and watch TV and maybe do something unproductive like surf the net on Jasper's laptop.

"Well, I'm in," James said from his spot near the window.

"Alright then, let's dress up and meet here in 30 minutes," Jasper said. Rose and Alice cast weary glances at him.

"What?" he asked.

Alice sauntered over to him. "Jazz, you know that 30 minutes is barely enough time for a girl to get ready!" she stated with a pout. Jasper sighed in defeat.

"Fine, forty-five minutes."

"Thanks, Jazz!" Alice said as she pecked him on the cheek before dragging Rose and I to their room.

"Are you _sure _you don't want to go?" Rose asked Vicky for the umpteenth time.

She rolled her eyes again. "Yes, I'm sure. I'm 1000% percent sure, ok?"

"Fine," Alice said sadly. "It won't be the same without you though."

"I'll be fine, I'm a big girl!" Vicky said.

"She has a point there," Rose agreed. We all nodded before going out to meet the boys in the car. "Don't wait up!" Alice said as Vicky closed the door behind us.

**

* * *

Vicky's Point of View**

Finally, they were gone, which meant that James was gone! The thought of it brought a smile to my face before I skipped over to my room like a giddy schoolgirl (a side of me _no one _has ever and will see) and closed the door.

I opened the audio files from Jacob's office and looked through them one by one. So far, none of them proved to show anything promising, except for a few phone conversations that I should really have Jasper look into. I clicked at another sound file and was greeted by the sound of a hushed conversation.

"_I'm telling you, this will work!" said a man._

"_And what if it doesn't?" I heard Jacob reply. _

"_Would you stop being so negative for once, Black? This plan will work, he'll agree and you'll simply _revise _some things." The other man said sinisterly. _My brows furrowed in concentration. _Who was this man? _

"_Why don't we give it a try?" I heard a woman, who I'm sure was Leah, say to Jacob._

_I heard a grunt, then a sigh. "At least let me think about it." Then I heard the sounds of diminishing footsteps before a door slammed shut._

"_Forgive him, he can be so stubborn sometimes," Leah said._

"_Oh, it's alright. Give it a few moments and I'm sure he'll come to his senses," the unknown man replied. _

_What were they planning to do?_

I closed the sound file and checked the date, it was from yesterday. Damn it! Why can't information just come freely? I heard the sound of raindrops outside my window and stood up, noticing the time on the taskbar of the computer. 8:45. It's been five minutes but I swear it felt longer.

I watched the water outside drip in silence, taking note at the steady increase of wind and rainfall. Before I knew it, the lights went out. The only source of light left in the room was from Jasper's laptop. _Thank God I didn't follow Jasper and used the battery instead!_

Suddenly, I heard a thump from outside the bedroom. _What was that? As far as I knew, I was alone. _I grabbed Jasper's technical manual from the laptop bag before putting on my slippers and slipping outside the door quietly. I could hear shuffling from the first floor. _An intruder at this hour? It was barely 9:00!_

I tiptoed down the stairs quietly as the shuffling noise got louder. For once, I never knew my FBI training would actually come in handy for things like this. This is so not my style.

Stepping into the living room, I squeezed myself against the walls and squinted my eyes to see better. _Why had I not asked them where the flashlights were? _

I saw a figure move slowly near to where I was standing and I lifted the manual over my head slowly.

"Stop right there!" I commanded. "Don't move! I have a thick technical manual and I'm not afraid to use it!" I said as the figure started to loom over me. My eyes widened in fear before my hands subconsciously brought the technical manual in contact with the intruder's head.

I heard an expletive before the person fell to a heap at my feet.

_Now, time to tie him up and find the fuse box. _

_

* * *

_After finding the fuse box, some rope and a flashlight, you know, the usual stuff, I headed back over to the living room to find my intruder. As I turned into the door, I was met by the sight of James unconscious and tied up with a purplish bruise starting to form near his temple.

_Shit. _

I walked over to him to find him still breathing as I knelt down near his feet and untied the restraints, all the while blushing at my stupidity and I _never _blush. 

_I mean, it's not like I don't LIKE him, but I don't exactly . . . despise him either. There, I said it! Albeit it's to myself, but that's a start!_

Carefully, I pulled at the ropes and removed the knots at his feet before I felt him start to stir.

"Hey! What happened? Where am I?" he asked frantically before squirming uncontrollably. I rolled my eyes and slapped him hard on the thigh.

"Stay still, don't move. Ask questions later," I said sternly as he suddenly froze and looked at me.

"Vicky?" he asked, surprised.

I looked up at him only to find him gaping at me like a fish. "What?" I snapped. "Is it the first time you've seen me before?"

He looked at me sheepishly before shaking his head and looking at his hands. "No, it's just, um . . . what are you doing to me?" he asked.

"I'm untying you," I answered curtly. At least we could be civil about this. "You were supposed to be gone, so when the lights went out and I heard shuffling, I hit whoever it was and it turned out to be you, with Jasper's thick technical manual," I replied, gesturing to the book lying innocently on the coffee table. He looked over at it and winced, probably remembering the force of impact I brought upon his head.

I smiled before getting up and undoing the ropes on his wrists.

"Thanks," he replied, rubbing his wrists gently when I finished.

"It's nothing," I replied before heading back to my room.

I was about to go up the stairs when James' voice reached my ears.

"So, uh, Vicky," he said awkwardly. I turned around to face him.

"Wanna do something?" he asked, looking at his feet.

* * *

Ok! So there's chapter 21! I know it's not that long but I'll try to post the next chapter sooner, like, tomorrow or tonight. What do you think? Please give your comments and suggestions to me because it always helps in making the story better!  



	23. Chapter 23

**Wow! What do we have here? ANOTHER UPDATE?? **_**AND**_** we reached 250 reviews!? Whoa! **

**Yes, it's another update! Yay! I'm trying to get back into my writing groove and trying my very best to update more frequently. If I didn't come home at 7:00 every night and have to sleep two hours later with nothing to do in between, you'd have updates every 2 days. Unfortunately, I DO come home at 7:00 every night with things to do in between before sleeping two hours later. That sucks.**

**Well, anyway! I hope you enjoy this next (fluffy) installment!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 22

Confusing Connections

_"What was that for?"_

_

* * *

He looked at me sheepishly before shaking his head and looking at his hands. "No, it's just, um . . . what are you doing to me?" he asked._

_"I'm untying you," I answered curtly. At least we could be civil about this. "You were supposed to be gone, so when the lights went out and I heard shuffling, I hit whoever it was and it turned out to be you, with Jasper's thick technical manual," I replied, gesturing to the book lying innocently on the coffee table. He looked over at it and winced, probably remembering the force of impact I brought upon his head._

_I smiled before getting up and undoing the ropes on his wrists._

_"Thanks," he replied, rubbing his wrists gently when I finished._

_"It's nothing," I replied before heading back to my room._

_I was about to go up the stairs when James' voice reached my ears._

_"So, uh, Vicky," he said awkwardly. I turned around to face him._

_"Wanna do something?" he asked, looking at his feet._

_

* * *

_

**Vicky's Point of View**

_Wow. That was . . . unexpected. _

Let's see, I can let my guard down and go with him, I mean, what's the worst that we could do? Share our feelings while listening to pop songs? Wait, I dislike sharing my feelings and pop songs. Or I could just saunter off and do what I want to do, mainly, listen to some more surveillance tapes while waiting for the storm to stop.

_Decisions, decisions. What to do . . .  
_

Okay, let's be real here, I don't dislike him _that _much _anymore_ and he seems like a pretty decent guy that I could maybe have a connection w—

Hold up. I'm starting to sound like Alice.

I'll be blunt: to go, or not to go?

"Vicky?" I heard him ask.

"What?" I snapped, turning around to face him. He looked surprised for a moment. "Nothing, it's just that, well, you've been standing there for a full minute while staring into space," he pointed out.

_Damn him. I hated it when he was right._

"What if I _liked _standing there and staring into space?" I asked, letting acid leak into my tone. _Vicky the Bitch is back. _"You know what, I'm just going upstairs." And with that, I started going up the stairs but not before a hand wrapped around my wrist, sending tingles through my arm.

James looked at me, his pleading eyes boring into mine. _Geez! When did I start sounding like a trashy romance novel?_

"I'm sorry for what I said," he apologized. "It's just, well, we're alone and I don't really have anything to do, so maybe I thought, you'd like to . . . uh . . . watch a movie with me?" he said, rushing out the last part.

"I'm sorry, what?" I asked again.

He took a deep breath. "Would you like to watch a movie?" he asked.

I raised a questioning brow at him. "It depends, what movie?" I asked, not wanting to watch some shitty rom-com or some other cheesy movie.

He shrugged. "I don't know, I saw Mission Impossible 3 on the shelf. Is that okay?"

I smiled. "Definitely okay," I replied. I haven't watched that movie yet and I've been itching to see it.

"Hold up, I'll just get something while you set-up, okay?" I asked. He nodded before letting go of my wrist, which I hadn't noticed he still held in his hand.

Going up the stairs, I turned around to look behind me only to hear him rustling about in the living room. Satisfied that he was nowhere in sight and within hearing range, I ran to my room, locked it and let out a squeal.

_Okay, so I've always secretly liked him and never let it show. I should win a fucking Oscar for this. _

**

* * *

**

**James' Point of View**

I grabbed the DVD of Mission Impossible 3 and slipped it into the DVD player, all the while wearing a shit-eating grin on my face for getting Vicky to agree to this. So what if I was bisexual? So what if it wasn't actually a date? I've gotten her to agree with me on something and that brings me one step closer to what I really want.

_Her. _

Seriously, never have I met a woman that could make me _forget _about men! It's so . . . mind-altering, surprising, shocking and any other synonym for surprise. My stay here so far has been wonderful and all because it was an unquestionable excuse to spend time with her.

I took the remote and plopped down on the couch and at the same moment that I did, Vicky appeared through the door, carrying a laptop.

"It's Jasper's. I'm listening to the surveillance tapes. Do you mind if I listen after the movie?" she asked.

I shook my head. "Go ahead," I replied.

She shot me a grateful smile before sitting down on the other end of the couch and putting the laptop on the coffee table. After watching her get comfortable, I pressed play.

I watched the opening credits play along with the first scenes of the movie. After a while, it just became boring and monotonous and even Tom Cruise couldn't hold my attention so I turned a little bit to watch Vicky instead.

When I turned to look at her, she wasn't watching the movie anymore, but instead, tapping away on Jasper's laptop as she untangled the cords for the headset.

She sensed me looking at her and faced me, looking sheepish. "I'm sorry, it's just . . . I can't focus on the movie knowing that there's so much to think about," she said, gesturing to the laptop.

"Do you mind if I listen with you?" I asked, grabbing the remote and hitting the stop button.

"S-sure," she answered hesitantly, avoiding my eyes. She turned the laptop towards me and I scooted closer to her.

She unplugged the headset, deciding to use the built-in speakers instead. I watched her click a sound file dated from yesterday.

"Hey, I heard this one awhile ago; it's a conversation between Jacob, Leah and some guy I don't know. Can you maybe, listen to it and see if you recognize the voice?" she asked.

"I'll try, play it," I said. She clicked the play button and I listened to the conversation.

"_I'm telling you, this will work!" said a man. _I frowned, _where have I heard that voice before? _

After listening to the whole thing, I looked at her and shrugged in apology.

"The voice is familiar but I just can't put my finger down on who it is," I told her.

She looked crestfallen but nodded, looking down. "Thanks anyway," she replied quietly. She looked sad, I hated seeing her sad. From the short time I've known her; I learned that Vicky always, _always _wanted to know what she didn't know. She didn't like getting her hopes up, only to have them crushed. _Maybe that's why she's always so bitchy and grumpy. _

"Hey, Vic," I said, holding her chin and tilting her head up to face me. Her eyes swirled with confusion as they looked back at me.

_And God did those eyes look breathtaking._

I didn't know what came over me then, but before I knew it, I leaned forward and pressed my lips to hers.

* * *

**Edward's Point of View **

"Hey, where's James?" I asked Emmett as I he got into the backseat of the Volvo.

He wagged his eyebrows at me. "His leg started cramping up while we were dressing so I suggested that he stay at the cabin instead to keep an eye on Vicky, and maybe, _finally, _make a move on her," he replied, telling us of his genius plan.

"Does he even like her?" Jasper asked.

"It's quite obvious," Alice stated.

"Do you actually think he'll make a move on her?" Rose asked Alice.

Alice gave her _the look. _She always has that look when she gets one of her weird "feelings." Esme thinks it's quite adorable, I think it's creepy sometimes.

"We're here," I announced as I parked to the side of the small establishment. They all stepped out of the Volvo and headed inside. I went over to the passenger's side and let Bella out.

She threw me a smile. "Always the gentleman, aren't we?"

I shot her my trademark crooked grin that I knew she loved. "Always," I answered before she took my arm and we headed inside. The place looked quaint and warm. It was like a large cabin turned into a restaurant. The windows were large and framed with colorful flowers. The lights hung from the ceiling and gave the place a nice, warm glow.

"Morgan, my man!" Emmett greeted, clapping a slightly older gentleman on the back.

The man smiled back jovially at Emmett before patting his shoulder. "Emmett! It's good to see you again! And I see you brought your friends?" he asked, looking at us with a warm smile before his eyes settled on my Bella.

"Bella! I haven't seen you in ages! How are you?" he asked, saying the last word in a whisper. He obviously knew what happened to Bella.

She smiled back at him happily before answering with a simple "I'm fine" and leaning back into me. Morgan was an older man, looking to be around his mid-fifties with a warm smile that reminded you of your grandfather.

"Have a seat!" he said, leading us into the booth at the back and seating us. "I'll have Marge come in and take your orders," he said, before scurrying off to the kitchen.

"He seems nice," Alice commented as she looked at the menu on the table.

"You bet he is! He's awesome!" Emmett boomed.

"How'd you meet him?" Rose asked.

"Well, mom and dad have always owned the cabin since Bella and I were kids. This place was always here too and we discovered it one day while biking. They have the best sundaes," Emmett finished, licking his lips at the thought of eating a sundae.

"Emmett used to go here every day when we stayed at the cabin and ordered a chocolate sundae. Soon, we met Morgan and his wife, Marge when they visited the place. Now, they like running it when they're around and always make it a point to be here when we are. They're an awesome couple and are incredibly trustworthy. Other than you guys, Morgan and Maggie are the only ones who know about what happened to me," Bella said.

"Hello, everyone," an woman said as she approached our table.

"MARGE!" Emmett yelled as he gave her a big bear hug.

"Oh! I missed you too, Emmett," she said happily.

He sat back down and beamed at her, like a little kid waiting for a lollipop. "I'm guessing you'll have your usual?" she asked.

He nodded vigorously, letting his inner kid out. "Definitely!"

"What's his usual?" I whispered in Bella's ear, watching in satisfaction as she let out a small shiver.

"Cold?" I asked with a smirk.

She shook her head lightly. "No, and you'll see," she replied.

We all ordered our food, agreeing to share over whatever looked good on the menu knowing well that Emmett would be able to scarf down what we couldn't.

"Hey look! It's raining outside!" Alice pointed out.

"It'll stop," Jasper replied.

Alice pouted. "I hope so, I don't want to get wet," she said. We all laughed.

* * *

When the food came, we each had a plate in front of us while Emmett had three. There was steak, pasta and salad, all on separate dishes but all in front of him.

"You're going to eat _all that_?" Jasper asked in surprise.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Just watch, brother."

We watched in awe, sometimes stopping mid-bite as we watched Emmett fork down his food.

And he finished before we were even halfway done.

"Whoa," we all said in surprise, our mouths hanging open except for Bella and Rose who threw each other smirks.

"And it still hasn't stopped raining, it just got harder," Alice said, staring glumly out the window.

"Don't worry, Aly, it'll stop soon. There's still dessert," Rosalie said with a laugh.

* * *

**James' Point of View**

I stared at Vicky after pulling away from that earth-shattering kiss.

"That was . . ." she said, trailing off, her voice breathless.

Suddenly, her face darkened and she slapped me. Hard.

I clutched my cheek, feeling the sting of her slap. "What was that for?" I asked.

"For kissing me!" she yelled.

"You certainly didn't protest," I retorted before I noticed that we were leaning towards each other again, our noses brushing.

She looked at my lips, as I did hers before our eyes met.

I leaned further and touched my lips to hers again, sweeping her up in a passionate kiss.

I felt her respond, her arms going around my neck before she abruptly pulled away, looked at me like a deer in headlights, grabbed the laptop and ran upstairs.

_What was with that woman? Sometimes she ran hot, and sometimes she was an ice queen. _

I touched my reddened cheek and a goofy grin suddenly took over my face. _But that kiss was definitely worth it._

* * *

**Edward's Point of View**

After three hours of catching up, eating and talking about Vicky and James' hot and cold relationship, we were standing by the entrance, ready to go home. Unfortunately, it did _not _stop and it started to rain even harder.

"I'll drive the Volvo around the entrance," I whispered to Bella as I made a move to get up.

She grabbed my arm. "Don't! It's still raining and you'll get sick," she replied, looking at me with concerned eyes. I smiled and caressed her cheek.

"I'll be fine," I said before going out into the rain.

It was cold, windy and wet, as to be expected. I ran quickly towards the Volvo, feeling my shirt get soaked with each step I took. I let out a breath when I reached the car. I opened it swiftly and slipped inside, running a hand through my hair as I started the car.

Driving it towards the entrance, they all moved towards the car slowly, entering once I reached the covered area. Bella went inside and looked at me.

"You're all wet," she commented, resting her warm hand on my cold and wet sleeve. I shrugged.

"Don't worry," I consoled her.

"You know I can't keep that from happening, right?" she asked as I started making our way back to the cabin.

"I know, but tone it down. We're trying to relax this week, so don't get to wound up," I said, lightly caressing her cheek.

* * *

**Bella's Point of View **

"Bella?" A voice said before I felt a hand lightly tapping my shoulder.

"Bella?" The voice said again. I rubbed my bleary eyes and found Alice sitting on the bed, a troubled look on her face.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Edward's in his room, sick as a dog. I think running through the rain last night caught up with him," she said sadly.

I got up instantly. "But is he okay?" I asked, her, throwing on a decent shirt and some sweat pants.

She shrugged. "Besides the fact that he's sick, he seems to be fine. He's not warm, just sniffling and coughing. How about I make some soup?" she asked.

"Thanks, Aly." I gave her a hug before heading to Edward's room.

"You blamed me for my concern?" I teased as I gave him a kiss on the forehead.

He sniffed. "How was I supposed to know that my infallible luck would fail me?" he grumbled, grabbing a tissue and blowing his nose.

I've never seen Edward this way, but to see him now, so vulnerable and well . . . sickly, it just made my heart crumble. I should have tried harder and stopped him from running out.

But knowing him and his stubbornness, that was unlikely to happen, he was as stubborn as a mule, and as stubborn as, well, myself.

I ran my fingers through his soft bronze locks, trying to soothe him and get him to sleep, knowing well that having a cold made it difficult to sleep comfortably.

* * *

A few moments later, Alice entered the room, carrying a tray of chicken noodle soup, some French toast, orange juice, water and some cold medicine.

"How'd you come up with all of this?" I asked, surprised.

She smiled. "He is my brother and don't worry, Jasper did it," she replied with a giggle. I shook my head, laughing quietly.

"I'll go now," she whispered.

"You don't have to," I told her.

She smiled at me. "He needs you right now, and it's your time to spend with him, not mine. I can annoy him another time," she replied before going out of the bedroom.

"Edward, wake up, Alice brought breakfast," I whispered, patting his arm gently to wake him up.

He grumbled and stirred, looking up at me with a groggy smile.

I propped some pillows up behind him as he moved to sit up.

Grabbing the spoon from the tray, I looked up at him before his hand stopped me.

"Bella, I can take care of myself," he said.

"But I like taking care of you," I replied with a pout.

He raised a playful eyebrow at me. "You like being my nurse?" he whispered in my ear, licking my lobe.

I repressed a shudder that threatened to go through me. "Definitely," I answered breathily as his hand reached my hip.

It seemed like he was going to be just fine.

* * *

**And there we go, chapter 22! What do you think? Any comments? Suggestions? Stuff you want to be included when the drama begins? Tell me! Please?  
**

**Feed my addiction and review, please! :D **


	24. Chapter 24

***peeks timidly***

**Hello there everyone! I know it's been AGES since I last updated but school got in the way. But I haven't fallen of the face of the planet, and for that I am very thankful :) and by the way . . *ehem* **

**I'm so so so so so so sorry! The good news is that tests are over so I have some update time.**

**There will be a time lapse here to get the story moving, just so you know.**

**Once again, THANK YOU to all my lovely readers and reviewers who are still hanging on and waiting. You guys make my day :) And I apologize again, it's just that real life has been very pressing lately. **

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 23

Bring on the Allies

"_And you just went against your own point."_

_**

* * *

Previously . . . **_

_He grumbled and stirred, looking up at me with a groggy smile. _

_I propped some pillows up behind him as he moved to sit up._

_Grabbing the spoon from the tray, I looked up at him before his hand stopped me. _

"_Bella, I can take care of myself," he said._

"_But I like taking care of you," I replied with a pout._

_He raised a playful eyebrow at me. "You like being my nurse?" he whispered in my ear, licking my lobe. _

_I repressed a shudder that threatened to go through me. "Definitely," I answered breathily as his hand reached my hip. _

_It seemed like he was going to be just fine. _

**

* * *

Vicky's Point of View**

I was an indecisive bitch.

There, I said it.

Is it so wrong to want something and to abhor it at the same time? There must be something wrong with me. That's it. There _must _be something wrong with me. I need to see a shrink who'll recommend that I go to some place far, far away, and then maybe I can change my name and—

No, not this time.

I'm sick and tired of always running away and of letting my fears and insecurities get the better of me. It was a stupid show of cowardice, cowardice that I've tried so hard to mask. I can't leave now, I can't abandon Bella, especially now when she needs me. I mean, she turned to _me _for help after all these years. At least, now that we were out of the cabin, I could breathe again without feeling that tension in the air.

My martini swirled around the glass slowly as I idly twirled the thin glass. I must've been a sight—hair slightly askew, reddish eyes and staring at a martini like it held the very meaning of life. Plus, I was in the Waldorf Astoria—_I really belonged._

I'll be honest with myself for once and deal with James. _Later. _

During my staring contest with my martini, I almost missed it when a lady hurriedly walked behind me, her heels making annoying clicking sounds on the tile floor. _This is why bars should have carpeted floors. _I looked up to tell her off for making her heels so damn _clicky_ when I saw her scurry off to a corner booth with someone. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that it was Jacob and the lady was . . . well, some lady I've never seen before.

I pushed my hair down over my eye and peeked through the gaps. He was holding a thick envelope which he handed over when she handed him an equally thick, but smaller envelope. My eyes automatically narrowed. _What's in the envelope? Drugs? No, probably smaller . . . cash?  
_

Whatever it was, it obviously couldn't be given out in broad daylight like a gift or something. I immediately called the bartender and paid for my drink, grabbed my small khaki clutch and hurried out of the hotel.

The sun outside was blinding, especially after my own mini pity-party in a dark bar over my feelings for James. I grabbed my shades and slipped them over my eyes before walking to, where else? James' office. It's not like Jacob was there anyway.

I entered the glass doors and headed straight for the receptionist's desk. The guy didn't even get a chance to get a breather before I leaned over his desk.

"James Davis, please," I said in my smoothest voice.

He got all buggy-eyed before pulling his collar and swallowing a lump in his throat.

"Er . . . um, ah, tenth f-floor," he stuttered out.

"Thanks." I managed a brief smile before walking to the elevator.

The ride upstairs was long and way too slow for my liking. Finally, the number ten lit up and the elevator pinged, signaling my arrival to the tenth floor.

His table was the very first thing I saw, and there he was, leaning over it, writing. His eyebrows were furrowed and his hair was shining in places where the light caught it and—_shut up, shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!_

I took a deep breath before heading to his table.

"Hello, James," I greeted him.

His head snapped up—way too fast to still stay intact.

"Vicky! Hi there!" he replied happily. "To what do I owe this pleasure?" he asked, putting on his "_smooth voice". _

I grabbed his hand and pulled him out of his seat. "We need to talk," I said bluntly.

"Wh—about what?" he asked.

"I saw some things, I need your opinion."

"Shouldn't you go to Jasper or to Emmett for these things?" he asked.

I turned around sharply. "Yeah, I could, but I went here instead. Deal with it," I snapped.

"Dealing," he mumbled.

"Good."

* * *

Ten minutes later, we were in Starbucks, sipping our coffee and looking a lot like a couple on a coffee date. _You can't imagine how much that thought makes me all giddy inside._

"So what happened?" he asked, leaning back and resting his head on the back of the upholstered couch.

I looked at him, only to find him staring expectantly at me. "I saw Black with a woman at the Waldorf Astoria. They were in some secluded section of the bar and she handed him this thick envelope. He handed her an even bigger one. I don't exactly know what it means, but with the setting and the circumstances, I'm sure it's not legal," I said.

He nodded thoughtfully. "We should tell the others about this," he mused.

"Yeah, we should," I agreed. "I'll ask Bell to call a meeting then?" I asked.

"By all means," he replied, gesturing to my phone which was resting on the table between us.

I picked it up, flipping it open, ready to dial Bella's number before I remembered something and I snapped the phone shut again.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"_Now, _we need to talk," I told him seriously.

"Didn't we already talk?" he asked me, looking confused.

I sighed. _It was now or never. _"We have other things to talk about."

**

* * *

Bella's Point of View**

"I really think Vicky's on to something, don't you?" I asked Emmett as he busily scrolled through the contacts list in his phone.

"Uhuh," he mumbled in response, still clicking away.

"Are you even listening to me? What are you looking for?" I asked him.

He glanced at me before looking back at his phone. "Another contact of mine that I'm sure can help us."

"Found it!" He exclaimed happily before putting his serious face back on and dialing the number. I heard him mumble a greeting before stepping out of the living room.

"What's he doing?" Edward asked, as he entered the front door, obviously curious about Emmett and his phone conversation on the outside porch.

I shrugged. "I don't know, he says he has another contact of his that might be able to help us," I told him.

He nodded thoughtfully before leaning in to kiss me. "Well I sure hope that this whole thing is resolved soon," he said warily. "I don't want anything else to happen to you, but I promise to always keep you safe," he added.

I smiled at him and pecked him on the lips.

"Okay, I'm inside now so you can keep the kissy faces for later!" Emmett announced as he used his phone to cover his eyes.

Edward laughed and gave me another quick peck before pulling away. "You go do your business and I'll change. If you need anything, just holler."

"Now that he's gone . . . you are free from distractions and I can tell you what just happened," Emmett said happily.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Well you see, I know this guy . . ." he started.

I laughed and rolled my eyes. "I'm learning lately that you know a _lot _of guys, Emmett."

He shook his head. "This one's special, he's a P.I. and he said he could help us," he stated proudly.

"I'm guessing you sent him digging," I surmised.

"And presto, you got it!"

"She got what?" Edward asked as he entered the room.

"Emmett just hired a private investigator and sent him digging," I told him.

"What are you hoping to find?" Edward asked.

"I was thinking—"Emmett was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"We're here!" Alice squealed as she pulled Jasper and Rose along behind her. Vicky and James came in, carrying some folders.

"What happened? Update us!" Alice said eagerly, foregoing all greetings as she helped Jasper set-up his laptop.

"I hired a private investigator and sent him digging," Emmett said, repeating what I said.

"Digging for what?" James asked as he flipped through the folders in his hands.

"Whatever random information he can find on Jake and Leah?" he replied, making it sound more like a question.

"Well I have something concrete for you right here." Vicky pulled out one of the folders from James' arms and tossed it to Jasper.

We all huddled around him to see what was inside. It was a list of deposits and withdrawals.

"What's that supposed to be?" Rose asked.

"It's a list of deposits and withdrawals from the main account in Jacob's company," Edward pointed out.

James let out a low whistle. "That's a lot of zeroes." Near the bottom of the page was a recent deposit of one million dollars and next to that list was a five thousand dollar withdrawal made on the same day.

"Where do you think he got the money?" Jasper asked.

"It's probably from his meetings with those people in hotels!" Vicky said.

"What meetings?" Alice turned to Vicky with wide eyes. She and James looked at each other before launching into their tale of how they saw Jacob with a woman in the Waldorf Astoria yesterday.

"How did she look?" I asked.

James looked up for a moment, thinking. "She was wearing shades, which was quite unusual since she was in a bar. Um . . . she had red hair, lighter than Vicky's almost strawberry blonde?" he wondered. I noticed Edward's head perk up at the description.

"She was tall, about Rose's height, thin and wore these really pointy red stilettos," Vicky finished.

"Red soles?" Alice asked. Vicky nodded.

"Louboutins."

"Did you say she was a strawberry blonde?" Edward asked James.

"Hard to tell in the low light, but more or less it was red in a way that it wasn't really that red," James replied.

"Straight hair?"

James nodded. "Now that I think about it, she sort of reminds me of—" Edward interrupted him.

"Tanya?" he asked.

"Who's Tanya?" Emmett asked.

"Edward's ex," I replied thoughtfully.

"This is a new development," Jasper announced.

* * *

**Jasper's Point of View**

We had to organize our findings. First, James and Vicky saw Jacob, and probably Tanya, having a conversation at the Waldorf Astoria. Second, we now had a P.I. and third, I was yet to share the fact that I uncovered some stuff myself.

"Guys? I have info to share," I said, getting their attention.

"What is it?" Alice asked.

I clicked on the folder icon and opened up some surveillance videos I got from Jacob's office. Bella peeked over my shoulder and her eyebrows scrunched together.

"How'd you hack the cameras?" she asked.

I threw her a smug smile before launching into a tale of how I _pretended _to be one of the hired programmers and how I made up some bullshit story about how the main framework crashed.

"And they believed you?" Vicky asked, shocked. I nodded in response.

"Idiots, all of them," I heard her mutter under her breath.

I spoke up again. "Anyway, when I got in, I just got a pass code from the guard and did my magic. _Viola! _I got in." I clicked on the play button and the video played.

It showed Jacob leaning over on his desk, talking in hushed voices with a man wearing a fedora hat. _Seriously, who wears fedoras anymore? _

* * *

"_We need that desk," the man told him, his voice deep and husky. _

"_It's a piece of plastic shit, what could possibly be in there?" Jacob asked, annoyance painting his features._

"_Black, I'm serious. I heard it from someone. That desk is not some piece of plastic shit, as you so crassly call it. There's something in there—and it's obviously something not meant to be found," the man replied, huffing. _

_Jacob shook his head and raised his hands up in surrender. "Fine! I'll try to look at it, but if there's nothing in there, consider yourself fired!"_

"_It's in there, Jake. You just need to look hard enough." The man pushed his hat further down his head before walking out of the office. _

* * *

"So, what do you make of it?" I asked everyone. I had no idea what the elusive "desk" was, but since it was obviously part of more hushed matters, I considered showing them the tape.

Looking over at them, I saw that Bella was confused, Edward was looking at her, looking even more confused than she was. James and Vicky were huddled together—arguing--_as usual_. Alice and Rose were looking at each other while Emmett looked . . . contemplative.

"Em?" I asked, hoping to get some insight from him.

"I know what's in the desk," he whispered.

* * *

**And that concludes chapter 23! Sorry if it's a little short. I promise (seriously!) to update soon. Hopefully it won't take two months this time.**

**By the way, any suggestions and ideas that you want in the story are highly appreciated—just leave me a PM! :)  
**


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey there everyone :) I'm finally back. RL has been quite stressful so there are no explanations. But I'm back with a new update for all of you.**

**I'd like to thank all the awesome readers and reviewers out there who continue to read and add me on their alerts even though I haven't posted in FOREVER. **

**I've also decided to maybe write the rest of the story first while I can, so that I can continuously post even once summer's ended :) **

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

* * *

**Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 24

Secret's Not So Secret

"_If, hypothetically, I wanted to give my life up for you, would you let me? Hypothetically, of course"_

_

* * *

Previously. . ._

_Jacob shook his head and raised his hands up in surrender. "Fine! I'll try to look at it, but if there's nothing in there, consider yourself fired!"_

_"It's in there, Jake. You just need to look hard enough." The man pushed his hat further down his head before walking out of the office. _

_"So, what do you make of it?" I asked everyone. Bella was confused, Edward was looking at her, looking even more confused than she was. James and Vicky were huddled together—arguing. Alice and Rose were looking at each other while Emmett looked . . . contemplative._

_"Em?" I asked, hoping to get some insight from him._

_"I know what's in the desk," he whispered._

**

* * *

BPOV**

"What's in it, Em?" I asked, standing up and walking towards him. Whatever it was, it was something big.

Something _very _important.

Very few things could make Emmett stand in silence the way he was now, unless of course, you counted food and Rosalie into that equation, but that's beside the point. I looked confusedly at him, he still wasn't answering and instead, pursed his lips repeatedly.

"Emmett, what's in the desk? Pursing your lips repeatedly isn't going to help right now, unless it's some sort of Morse Code you're trying to pull at me right now, then stop wasting your time because I know nothing about that," I told him.

"Bells. . ." he started, rubbing the back of his neck. "This isn't something I can _just _blurt out and tell you guys!"

"Then we'll go to the room and talk about it there," I offered. He shook his head.

"I can't tell you because I promised dad that I wouldn't tell _anyone—_that includes you, lil' sis."

From my peripheral vision, I saw Vicky stand up and walk towards us. "Em, you can tell us, we won't tell anyone, and it might be really helpful. Please," she pleaded with him.

He shook his head, looking tortured. "I can't."

"Then we'll just have to guess it!" Jasper said from where he was standing.

"Guess it? Out of all the ideas, we're going to _guess _what's in the desk?" Alice shrieked. "There are a million—no, _more _than a million things that could be in that desk!"

I shrugged, considering Jasper's idea. "It's a good plan," I said.

Edward stepped in. "Emmett, please just tell us! Or. . ." he trailed off, seeing a pad of paper on the desk. He grabbed it along with a pencil. Tearing off a sheet, he handed it to my brother and asked him to sit down.

"If you won't _tell _us by speaking, then _write _it down," he suggested. Emmett's eyes brightened at this and he started writing as we all huddled around him, covering the paper from any prying eyes—whether there _were _other eyes around here or not.

From over his shoulder, I read what was on the paper first:

_All of the company's accounts, listings, business investments, passwords and economic strategies are inside. Dad's whole life is practically in there. _

My eyes widened at the realization. _Everything _was in there, in the wrong hands; the contents of that desk were like monsters in Pandora's box getting ready to explode. If Jacob found out about it, he would have a field day, and most likely get it out of Charlie's hands—willingly or not. That man lived for fortune, his life was nothing but greed and he _knew _it. Nothing made me feel more sick than knowing that someone out there wanted power so badly that he'd go to the farthest extents to get it.

And I don't mean fair and square either.

My mind was a jumbled mess of thoughts as I struggled to arrange them into something that made sense. There were motives, but not enough reasons, in my eyes. I mean, who could really be _that _desperate?

Sitting back down on the couch, I put my head in my hands as I tried—in vain—to clear my head. Edward put his firm hands on my shoulders and started rubbing them, noticing my tense stance.

Everyone in the room was silent, each in their own bubble of contemplative thought.

Finally, Jasper broke the silence. "Em? How do you open it?" he asked in low whisper.

I turned to my brother just as he let out a breath and shrugged. "That. . . dad did not tell me. I suppose showing it to me was just for awareness, especially after Bells "died", dad needed to know that his dream had stability--that it wouldn't crumble under the weakest of touches from the wrong people. Dad spent his whole life making his empire the way it is today, and all he wanted was for it to be safe."

"Now we have our priorities straight," Vicky murmured. "Bella and the desk. But as far as I know, he doesn't know about Bella . . . yet," she said, looking at me. "So the desk needs more of our attention. We can't have anyone snooping around Charlie's office when he's not around, and even when he _is _around. We can't take any chances."

"I have just the thing for that," Jasper said as he walked to his bag and produced a small piece of metal. It looked like a tick with a glowing red dot in the center.

"What's that?" Rose asked, walking over to examine it more closely. Jasper moved away and handed it to Emmett.

"It's a motion sensitive alarm, all you need to do is stick it to the underside of the desk or whatever part of it that holds the contents and it'll alarm on my phone if someone opens it," he explained.

"But what if Dad opens it?" I asked.

"I'll just explain to dad about the footage and stuff. I won't tell him that you guys know, since, he knows nothing about this operation of ours. I'll just tell him it's a precaution. Jas, do you think you link this up to my phone too? Just so that I have an idea about the thing and so that you won't go haywire when it's dad who opens the drawer," Emmett chuckled.

* * *

As I lay in bed that night, I watched Edward's slumbering profile highlighted in the moonlight. I heard his steady breaths, indicating that he was asleep. My fingers danced gently along his bare chest, rising and falling along with his breathing while I thought about today's events.

I was so confused; it was like I couldn't even determine if this was my fault. I knew that Edward wouldn't want me to blame myself, but I couldn't help it.

_Would it have been any different if you never even came back at all, Bella? _A voice inside my head spoke.

_What? _

"I said: would it really have been any different if you never even came back at all?" I looked up in surprise to see Edward holding my hand along his mouth, murmuring his words into my knuckles. I didn't even realize that I said my thoughts out loud and that it had roused him.

"I'm sorry for waking you up," I said, blushing deep crimson. He trailed his finger along my cheekbone.

"Never apologize for giving me more time to be with you, love," he murmured quietly before kissing me deeply. This kiss was all that I needed to make sure that I wasn't doing anything wrong. I relaxed into the kiss and wrapped my arms around his neck, pushing myself closer to him. He rolled us over so that I was resting on his lap as he sat up against the headboard. After a few seconds, I pulled away for air while he focused his attention on my neck and collarbone.

While he kissed me, my mind happened to once again, plague me with negative thoughts.

_Was this something so pressing that even Edward's kisses couldn't drive them away?_

I brushed his cheek lightly away from my neck and looked into his deep, green eyes. "Edward, I have a question. . ." I trailed off, not sure how to proceed.

He regarded me with amusement. "And what would that question be?" he asked.

I bit my lip and looked away for a moment before looking at him square in the eyes. "If, hypothetically, I wanted to give my life up for you, would you let me? Hypothetically, of course," I rambled out in a rush as I watched his amused expression melt into something serious.

His eyebrows furrowed. "Give your life up? You mean. . . die?"

I nodded my head slowly. "What if, _I _was just the one who faced Jacob? I mean, all of this," I said, gesturing wildly around me, referring to the whole situation. "All of this was technically my fault." I buried my face in the juncture of his neck and shoulder.

"Is it wrong to think that it's my fault?" I asked, suddenly feeling ashamed.

"Bella . . ." Edward murmured softly, pulling me up to face him. He looked so determined, his green eyes blazing. "Don't ever, _ever _even think that any of this was your fault. He doesn't even know you're here. All of this is just the product of his insatiable greed for money and power—you. Had. Nothing. To. Do. With. It." He enunciated.

"And as for my question?"

His look softened into something more tender. "As for your question, I know that you would really want to do something as noble as dying for the ones you love, but, Bella, think about actually dying for real this time," he pleaded. "It's a noble idea, noble but stupid, silly girl. If you die, then what about me? What about Emmett and Rose, Alice and Jasper, James and Victoria?" He asked; his lips quirking up into a smile at the mention of James and Vicky.

"What about your parents?" he added. "Do you really want to take the chance of ever being with you again when they don't even know that you've never even left?"

Damn it. The man made a good point; just another part of my life that I feel incredibly stupid for even bringing something up. But it felt good to know that I was. . .loved, cared for and valued. Tears sprung at the corners of my eyes as I remembered that this _was _the first time that I've ever felt so treasured, and I owed it all to Edward.

I looked at him, conveying all my love through my intense gaze. "You're right," I conceded. "Dying for someone who's not even worth it isn't a good idea. I know that _you _guys are worth dying for, but I don't think I can say the same about Jacob." I smiled a brilliant smile at him before kissing him again.

Pressing my forehead to his, my eyes closed, I murmured: "Thanks for making me feel so loved." I felt a light pressure against my lips and I smiled as I kissed him back.

* * *

The morning light shone brightly and brought what I hoped to be, better promises for the future. We once again congregated in the living room as I brought around breakfast for everyone, deciding to give Angela a day off.

"Did you give it to dad?" I asked, Emmett while he was wolfing down the bacon and eggs. He looked up at me, a piece of bacon still sticking out of his mouth.

"Mmph, yeah. . . I gave it roo dad and he go it," he said in between chews.

"So what do we do now?" Alice asked, as she leaned against the couch and stared at the ceiling.

Jasper turned to us from his laptop, showing a newly opened video screen. "We wait."

**

* * *

And there you have it! Chapter 24 :) I'll get myself writing probably the next 2 or 3 chapters and post them up once I've finished :D **

**Any suggestions and ideas that you want in the story are highly appreciated—just leave me a PM! :) **

**Feed my addiction and review, please! **


	26. Chapter 26

**Hello again, everyone! I'm back with a new installment of Through Your Window. Typing this was difficult though, as I had to work with a tiny keyboard on my laptop since my computer unceremoniously crashed. **

**I'd like to thank all the awesome readers and reviewers out there who continue to read and add me on their alerts. You guys are awesome!**

**And thanks to the anonymous reviewer who gave me an idea for this chapter. It was too funny not to put in, so if you're reading this, thank you! *cyber hug***

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine and no copyright infringement is intended. **

**

* * *

Through Your Window**

By writingunderatree

Chapter 25

Waiting Game

"_Nothing ever comes easy, if it did, then there'd be nothing to live for."_

_

* * *

Previously. . . _

_The morning light shone brightly and brought what I hoped to be, better promises for the future. We once again congregated in the living room as I brought around breakfast for everyone, deciding to give Angela a day off. _

"_Did you give it to dad?" I asked, Emmett while he was wolfing down the bacon and eggs. He looked up at me, a piece of bacon still sticking out of his mouth._

"_Mmph, yeah. . . I gave it roo dad and he go it," he said in between chews. _

"_So what do we do now?" Alice asked, as she leaned against the couch and stared at the ceiling._

_Jasper turned to us from his laptop, showing a newly opened video screen. "We wait." _

**

* * *

Alice's Point of View**

I'm not ashamed to say that waiting was _never _one of my strong suits, so when Jazz said that we had to wait; the first thing to come into my mind was—boring. Walking to the dining table, I decided to preoccupy myself by arranging my toast and eggs around my plate just the way I liked it.

Everyone around the room was also caught up in their own little bubble, including Jasper who had set up the camera monitor again, giving us a clear view of Jacob's office from the left side on one window, and another view from the door on the other. I saw them taking quick glances at the screen every now and again, but the office remained empty and held no point of interest at the moment. Just then, I felt Jazz slip in next to me, wrapping his arm around my chair, his hand resting on my shoulder.

"How long do you think this is going to take?" I asked him, nibbling at my toast and piercing a forkful of eggs off my plate.

He shrugged in response, biting into a piece of bacon that he grabbed off my plate. "I'm not really sure. My experience doesn't really cover profiling so it all depends on when Jacob decides to make a move."

"But we'll be able to stop him, right?" My eyes were wide with hope. I always had a feeling that we'd win this, but then I could never be sure because the future wasn't set in stone.

He smiled. "With this, we'll be one step ahead of him. Don't worry, Ali," he said, holding my hand up to his lips and gently kissing it. "Bella will be fine and everything will soon turn back to normal." _I sure hope so, _I thought. Bella had quickly become one of my best friends and I just want everything to be all right for her. I can't even begin to imagine how she's handling all of this.

**

* * *

**

**Bella's Point of View**

It's been two days, and nothing of particular interest caught our eyes as we watched the camera footage of Jacob's office. People came and went and it's been nothing but people walking and Jacob sitting on his desk doing work. I was starting to get impatient, but I knew that I had to hold my ground as Jasper had said, because we'd come across something soon.

"Hey guys! Check this out!" Emmett yelled as he stared at the huge computer monitor that we rigged the Jasper's laptop to. His face looked like he was watching a move. "Damn, that's nasty," he muttered as I strained to see what everyone else was looking at.

Alice shrieked and covered her eyes as soon as she was able to see the footage on the screen. "Ew, that is just _disgusting, _Emmett! I don't see how this is good entertainment!" She inched away from the TV and into the kitchen and I saw some very, ehem, _live _footage of Jacob and Leah, erm . . ._ getting it on, _as Emmett would so crassly call it.

"Whoa, that's hot!" he remarked just as I visibly shuddered. Jacob and Leah doing _that _was something I did _not _want to see. I felt Edward's arms around me as he ducked his head down to whisper in my ear.

"It's alright, love, I don't find it as interesting as Emmett does anyway." His chest rumbled lightly against my back as he chuckled.

I shook my head, amazed once more at my brother's antics and his ability to ignore things when he's entertained. "Why hasn't Rose hit him upside the head yet?" I asked him quietly, laughing softly.

"I guess she's enjoying the show just as much as he is," Edward replied, looking at Emmett and Rose who were staring at the TV like it was some porno waiting to happen.

"Oooh! That's gotta hurt!" Emmett grimaced just as we heard. _"Ouch, shit, fuck, Jacob!" _

I laughed at Jacob's failed attempt at "office romance".

"_You just completely killed the mood!" _I heard Leah say hotly as I watched her straighten up her skirt and grab her purse from wherever it was on the floor.

"_And don't expect me to come back until you've fixed your problem about "arriving early" and learned _not _to bang my head against the bookshelf!" _And with that, she sauntered out of the office, rubbing her what was soon to be bruised forehead.

All of us in the room were stunned silent, even James and Vicky, who chose to ignore Emmett's ramblings and live commentary, were silent, staring at the screen.

Then suddenly, we all burst out laughing.

"Damn! That was _hi_-larious!" Emmett boomed as he plopped down on the couch.

"Whatever, Emmett," Vicky said, from her place on the couch. "You just needed a little tension breaker over there, or should I say, tension-_maker_," she remarked, eyeing Emmett's lower half before rolling her eyes.

He groaned, smacking his forehead. "Rose!" He yelled, and I turned to Rose who was just shaking her head and laughing.

And we laughed some more at his expense.

* * *

That night, I found myself staring at the ceiling again. It was as if I was having another mental epiphany. I turned my head to the side and saw Edward sleeping peacefully next to me. I felt jealous that he could find sleep so easily while I had to lie here and try to _will _myself to sleep. If he ever found out about that I know he'd stay up with me, but that was already asking for too much, though I know he won't even think about that, because. . .

. . . well, because he loved me. And the thought made me smile.

I looked back at him and sighed softly. He really did look like an angel. _My _angel. The one who accepted me despite all the emotional baggage I carried.

Staring back at the ceiling, I let out a huff. "Why can't life just be _easy?" _I asked the air, closing my eyes and once more trying to will myself to sleep. I was shocked to hear it answer me.

"Nothing ever comes easy, if it did, then there'd be nothing to live for."

My eyes snapped open at this response and I stared at the ceiling just as I felt Edward's arm around my waist tighten a bit and his soft laughter cause vibrations across my belly. I smiled and faced him.

"I didn't know you were awake." I raised my eyebrow at him. He smiled crookedly at me.

"Can't sleep?" he asked.

I shrugged, looking back at the ceiling. "Yeah."

"So you've resorted to talking to the air?" The amusement in his voice was quite evident, and I'll admit, I found it funny as well.

I giggled. "I guess you could say that, I didn't expect it to answer though," I raised my eyebrows at him.

"You can tell me anything you know, I'm here." Edward gave me a quick peck before nuzzling my neck.

Smiling, I replied. "I know."

"That means if you can't sleep, I'm going to stay up with you," he declared, pulling me to his side as I burrowed myself into his chest, smelling him. It was divine.

"You don't have to do that, you know," I told him, even though it felt _really _good to be this close to him, even if we weren't doing anything. This felt more intimate. It was us--just laying there with me breathing in his masculine scent. I would never tire of it.

His hands ran along my hair, smoothing it and winding his fingers around the ends. I could feel my eyes getting heavy and the last thing I remembered was Edward whispering: "Sleep now, my Bella, I love you."

**

* * *

Edward's Point of View**

It's been a week since we've started the watch and so far, nothing fruitful had come from it. I returned to work, much to _my _dismay, since it was mostly due to Bella's insistence and _persistence _that I stop ignoring my job because of her.

"_But Bella, I _enjoy _spending my time with you and not having to worry about work!" I explained to her when she popped the suggestion of me going back to work. _

"_But Edward, I _want _you to go to work. Don't you see that you've already given me so much?_" _she asked with a visible pout. I groaned and looked away from her luscious lips because if I didn't look away, I'd be sorely tempted to look into her beautiful eyes; those gorgeous brown pools that would surely be in their full doe-eyed effect._

"_No." I replied firmly, falling back into the bed and covering my face with a pillow. I will not fall for her womanly charms! _

"_B-but. . . _Edward," _she said again, this time, my name coming from her lips in a . . ._ purr. _I felt her hand softly touch my chest as she moved closer to me. I could feel her curves pushing up against my side, her body warm and soft. The silk babydoll she was wearing wasn't doing anything to help me strengthen my resolve either. I was slipping, and the vixen knew it. _

"_No." Being defiant to Bella was not really one of my strengths. She was just so damn . . . convincing! And her rubbing herself against my side like a cat is not helping._

"_Are you sure?" she asked, her voice low and husky. "It would make me _very _happy if you went back to work. Just think about all the surprises I could plan while you're away. . ." she trailed off, sounding deep in thought. I could hear the smile in her voice._

_Then suddenly I thought of all those _surprises _that Bella could plan when I wasn't around. Yep, that was enough convincing. _

_I shot up from the bed. "I'll start on Monday," I announced, pulling Bella to me and giving her a deep, passionate kiss. She smiled against my lips._

_She pulled away from me. "I knew you'd do the right thing," she said with a sigh, as she melted into me. I stroked her back, feeling her shudder lightly as my lips captured hers again._

* * *

And now, it _is _in fact Monday, and I'm at work, sorting out papers and folders that held absolutely no meaning to me as my head conjured up more images of Bella. _Not good. Not good. _

Suddenly, my intercom buzzed.

"_Mr. Cullen, there's a Ms. Denali here to see you." _My receptionist said.

My eyes widened. _Not good. Not good._

**

* * *

And so the plot thickens! What do you think? I may take a little bit longer to bring out the next update since I'll be away for two weeks but don't fear! I'll figure something out :) **

**Once again, please review! ****Any suggestions and ideas that you want in the story are highly appreciated—just leave me a PM or put it in a review! :) **


	27. Sorry, but this isn't an update sad

Hey, all! Okay, I know it's been practically _forever _but I'm just not sure I can make any promises to finish this story _right now_. Don't worry, I'm not giving up on it, but real life has been busy so far that I'm losing time for myself. School has been so epically demanding so I'm not sure I can find anymore spare time to write for now. I'm putting this story on a brief hiatus, but you never know, maybe I'll find some spare time on the side to give an update, you never know *wink*

For all the readers, thank you for still being so super supportive, it's the drive that keeps me writing :)

Please don't review on this chapter as I'll be replacing it with the actual chapter when I can.

Love you lots,

Lily


End file.
